Cryptic crossword clue
Leaves with three leaflets, as work’s interrupted  by whistle-blower 8

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word TREFOILS

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
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Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Leaves with three leaflets" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case leaves with three leaflets = trefoils.
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 TREFOILS mean?

TREFOILS noun
  1. Any of several plants of the pea family, having compound, trifoliate leaves; especially one of the genus Trifolium.
  2. A symbol having the shape of such leaves, especially when used as an architectural ornament.
TREFOILS noun
  1. A knot formed by joining the two loose ends of a overhand knot to form a knotted loop; the simplest non-trivial knot.

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