The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 5 letter word EAST COAST
E
A
S
T
C
O
A
S
T
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Atlantic seaboard" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case atlantic seaboard = east coast.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.