The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word THRILLER
I've seen this crossword clue in The Sunday Telegraph
T
H
R
I
L
L
E
R
More clues leading to the result THRILLER
- Stream running into the river in exciting story
- That woman heartlessly choked by ploughman in suspenseful book?
- Suspenseful film’s human resources beset by director at sea?
- Book Human Resources introduced to rural worker
- Page-turner giving one tense time, not so good
- Stream in article on Republican makes for exciting story
- Time after time, I shall get the queen in sensational film
- Ploughman keeps time for a novel
- Michael Jackson song for a Hitchcock movie perhaps
- Novel album by Michael Jackson
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "exciting play, for example" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case exciting play, for example = thriller.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 THRILLER mean?
THRILLER noun- Something that thrills.
- A suspenseful, sensational genre of story, book, play or film.