The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word PEDANTIC
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
P
E
D
A
N
T
I
C
More clues leading to the result PEDANTIC
- Fussy editor opposed to interrupting law officer
- Particular doctor painted on canvas, primarily
- Italian poet back to front in photo, like 21
- Daughter participating in exercises and frolic, following strict patterns
- Pernickety poet finally coming to the fore in film
- Punctilious poet’s raised foot above head in photo
- Like teacher, editor and social worker featured in illustration
- Movingly depict an academic
- Like a schoolmaster punishing inept cad
- Political correctness drowning confused date in nit-picking
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "academic" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case academic = pedantic.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 PEDANTIC mean?
PEDANTIC adjective- Like a pedant, overly concerned with formal rules and trivial points of learning.
- Being showy of one’s knowledge, often in a boring manner.
- Being finicky or fastidious, especially with language.