The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word PRETENCE
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
P
R
E
T
E
N
C
E
More clues leading to the result PRETENCE
- Show on television initially in the money
- About time to stop vice-president making false claim
- It’s just make-believe, if 12-year-old hides a tablet at church
- Recent changes in gym are a sham
- Creep nervously round trap, lifting cover
- Claim represented by, say, nine Anglicans
- Awful creep, about ten, behaving insincerely
- About time, put in a little money for show
- Show ready in French church
- False profession
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "a sham" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case a sham = pretence.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 PRETENCE mean?
PRETENCE noun- An act of pretending or pretension; a false claim or pretext.
- Something asserted or alleged on slight evidence; an unwarranted assumption.
- Intention; design.