The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word RIFLEMAN
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
R
I
F
L
E
M
A
N
More clues leading to the result RIFLEMAN
- Search and take from island for armed soldier
- Scour island for shooter
- Soldier to sack valet
- Flier abandoned by fellow flier
- Firm, lean sort of soldier
- Queen provided lover for soldier
- One shoots a little, not at first a lot? Not entirely
- Rocky mineral broken by fine soldier
- Soldier‘s turned up to identify large tree
- Firm, lean sort of fighting man
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Soldier" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case soldier = rifleman.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 RIFLEMAN mean?
RIFLEMAN noun- A soldier trained to use a rifle as their primary weapon.
- A person especially skilled in the use of a rifle.
- A small wrenlike insectivorous passerine bird endemic to New Zealand, Acanthisitta chloris, the titipounamu.