The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 plus 4 letter word CUPBOARD LOVE
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
C
U
P
B
O
A
R
D
L
O
V
E
More clues leading to the result CUPBOARD LOVE
- Hypocritical show of affection from press, nothing more
- The press the object of such false adulation?
- For feigned affection, press 0
- Assumed warmth's from part of bulb around high piece of wood
- Hypocritical and acquisitive affection
- Manipulation by a child feeling closeted?
- Being12 another could be 12
- Selfish display of affection from cabinet, means nothing
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Hypocritical and acquisitive affection" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case hypocritical and acquisitive affection = cupboard love.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.