The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word STARED
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
S
T
A
R
E
D
More clues leading to the result STARED
- Reform of trades looked hard
- Celebrity editor held consistent views?
- Took a long look and began to forget time
- Sun journalist looked without blinking
- Took a hard look at various trades
- Observer did this with big-name journalist?
- Observed selection of co-star edgily
- Looked long and hard for Marxist behind terminal
- New trades looked hard
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "looked hard" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case looked hard = stared.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 STARED mean?
STARED verb- (construed with at) To look fixedly (at something).
- To influence in some way by looking fixedly.
- To be very conspicuous on account of size, prominence, colour, or brilliancy.
- To stand out; to project; to bristle.