The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word SYCOPHANT
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
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More clues leading to the result SYCOPHANT
- Toady law enforcer joins in shanty at sea
- Who acts with phony crawling?
- Refuse to accept bad copy? Yes man!
- Psycho crushed insect, one crawling
- Creep involved in phony acts
- One crawling out of Psycho shot with worker
- Phony acts broadcast by flatterer
- Crawler, extremely smarmy chap, not refined
- I refuse to accept edited copy for one seeking favour
- Bootlicker, extremely smarmy chap, not unexpectedly
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "flatterer" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case flatterer = sycophant.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 SYCOPHANT mean?
SYCOPHANT noun- One who uses obsequious compliments to gain self-serving favor or advantage from another; a servile flatterer.
- One who seeks to gain through the powerful and influential.
- An informer; a talebearer.
- To inform against; hence, to calumniate.
- To play the sycophant toward; to flatter obsequiously.