The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word MORALISER
I've seen this crossword clue in The Sunday Telegraph
M
O
R
A
L
I
S
E
R
More clues leading to the result MORALISER
- Pathetic liar's more a preacher
- Puritanical sort of curmudgeon needing internal examination?
- Preacher has spoken, uncharitable type admits
- Preacher as mean person getting spoken about? The opposite
- Ethicist said to bore Scrooge
- Ethical authority has spoken, interrupting someone mean
- Memory returning, dotty earl is predisposed to lecture about behaviour
- Mean type occupied by exam, sanctimonious sort
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Ethical authority" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case ethical authority = moraliser.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.