Cryptic crossword clue
Fabulous creature presses on each star thistle, for example 9

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word CENTAUREA

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
C
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A
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Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "star thistle, for example" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case star thistle, for example = centaurea.
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.

What does CENTAUREA mean?

CENTAUREA noun
  1. Any of the flowering plants in or formerly in the genus Centaurium.
  2. Any of diverse other plants:

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