The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word PHONETIC
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
P
H
O
N
E
T
I
C
More clues leading to the result PHONETIC
- Chopin composition, showcasing French and representative of the language
- Said Buzz, said Mark
- Pitch one made strange as it sounds
- Mannerism during call regarding the way speech sounds
- Pinochet lambasted in connection with speech
- Quietly sharpen habitual response of spoken words
- Describing sounds of one pitch, perhaps
- Involuntary response when calling to do with sound of speech
- Pinochet’s misrepresented in speech
- Alien stops playing Chopin as it sounds
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "to do with sound of speech" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case to do with sound of speech = phonetic.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 PHONETIC mean?
PHONETIC noun- In such writing systems as the Chinese writing system, the portion of a phono-semantic character that provides an indication of its pronunciation; contrasted with semantic (which is usually the radical).
- Relating to the sounds of spoken language.
- Relating to phones (as opposed to phonemes)