The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word CARIES
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
C
A
R
I
E
S
More clues leading to the result CARIES
- Rot from Conservative stars
- Tooth decay – one probing is concerned
- Decay that is running through vehicles
- Decay beginning to crack a sign
- Rottenness of most formidable clearing banks
- Canine’s first sign of tooth decay
- Caught stars in decay
- Is concerned about one problem seen in oral examination
- Tooth decay in canine, showing the first sign
- Is concerned about one getting tooth decay
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Rottenness" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case rottenness = caries.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 CARIES mean?
CARIES noun- The progressive destruction of bone or tooth by decay