The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word HOUND
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
H
O
U
N
D
More clues leading to the result HOUND
- Dog seen in Soho, undernourished
- Harry’s husband, plump, no Romeo
- Follow a Parisian boarding carrier
- House, ruined, evicting one despicable person
- Harass Afghan, say
- Part of pack to turn alternately into hearts and diamonds
- Harass peacekeepers boarding carrier
- Harry gets house north of stadium with 50 per cent off
- Harry Houdini, bereft of any ego, struggling
- Canine badger
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "despicable person" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case despicable person = hound.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 HOUND mean?
HOUND noun- A dog, particularly a breed with a good sense of smell developed for hunting other animals.
- Any canine animal.
- (by extension) Someone who seeks something.
- (by extension) A male who constantly seeks the company of desirable women.
- A despicable person.
- A houndfish.
- To persistently harass.
- To urge on against; to set (dogs) upon in hunting.
- (in the plural) Projections at the masthead, serving as a support for the trestletrees and top to rest on.
- A side bar used to strengthen portions of the running gear of a vehicle.