The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word CLINICAL
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
C
L
I
N
I
C
A
L
More clues leading to the result CLINICAL
- Catholic in the Italian uprising, supported by state, reaches objective
- Cold, emotionless Clinton, not backing out, takes one state
- Plain like some medicine?
- Detached building for visiting doctors, by a lake
- Auditor to clean one state that’s clean
- Cold got from study of patient
- Chinchilla, not hot at all, surprisingly cold?
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Plain/like some medicine" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case plain/like some medicine = clinical.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 CLINICAL mean?
CLINICAL noun- A medical student's session spent in a real-world nursing environment.
- Of or pertaining to a medical clinic or facility.
- Dealing with practical management of patients; contrasting with prehealth sciences.
- Cool and emotionless.
- Of or relating to a bed.