The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 3 plus 3 letter word HIGH AND DRY
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
H
I
G
H
A
N
D
D
R
Y
More clues leading to the result HIGH AND DRY
- Helpless, being under influence of drugs but not alcohol?
- Abandoned like person in tree escaping flood?
- Stranded on a trip with no booze!
- Helpless drunk also needs a drink
- Stranded, like Noah on Ararat?
- Stoned yet teetotal, getting wrecked on the beach, perhaps
- Abandoned, intoxicated — in addition, thirsty!
- Stranded dinghy had broken down crossing river
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Helpless" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case helpless = high and dry.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.