The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word PROFESSED
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
P
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F
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Buddy explains!
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 PROFESSED mean?
PROFESSED verb- To administer the vows of a religious order to (someone); to admit to a religious order. (Chiefly in passive.)
- To declare oneself (to be something).
- To declare; to assert, affirm.
- To make a claim (to be something); to lay claim to (a given quality, feeling etc.), often with connotations of insincerity.
- To declare one's adherence to (a religion, deity, principle etc.).
- To work as a professor of; to teach.
- To claim to have knowledge or understanding of (a given area of interest, subject matter).
- Openly declared or acknowledged.
- Professing to be qualified.