The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word ETHIC
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
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More clues leading to the result ETHIC
- Set of moral principles, and so on, covering Hawaii
- Have limited intelligence, sacrificing ends for moral principles
- Set of principles central to credo suiting the faith concept
- Hospital at heart of quote over a moral principle
- System of morals? This runs short in the City
- Set of values incorporated in The Thick of It
- Break the ice, waiving English principles
- Principle of the customised integrated circuit
- Values some Elizabeth I coins
- The principle of sauce thickening
Buddy explains!

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 ETHIC mean?
ETHIC noun- A set of principles of right and wrong behaviour guiding, or representative of, a specific culture, society, group, or individual.
- The morality of an action.
- Moral, relating to morals.