The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word OPIATES
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
O
P
I
A
T
E
S
More clues leading to the result OPIATES
- They soothe a temperature, tucking into round pastries
- . Old corsairs avoiding river in numbers
- Narcotics, one ingested by Roundheads?
- Drugs ring criminals run is gone
- Presbyopia testing involves drugs
- Drugs ring spreads to cover island
- A poet is affected by drugs
- Drugs work, I answer group in review
- Drugs first work, then a setback
- After work, Satie developed drugs
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Narcotics" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case narcotics = opiates.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 OPIATES mean?
OPIATES noun- A drug, hormone or other substance derived from or related to opium.
- Something that dulls the senses and induces a false and unrealistic sense of contentment.
- To treat with an opiate drug.