The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 4 letter word HARD CASH
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
H
A
R
D
C
A
S
H
More clues leading to the result HARD CASH
- Ready way around cutting grass
- Visa mix-up for Spooner? Here’s an alternative
- Unlikely to give money?
- Coin collection’s original solid silvery-grey boxes
- Essential requirement for operating a slot machine
- Brandish card when in mess – or ready money
- Playing card included in #realmoney
- In mess, card out of order, use this instead?
- Ready money in strong bag brought back by husband
- Not generous about American area needing a source of funds
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Essential requirement for operating a slot machine" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case essential requirement for operating a slot machine = hard cash.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.