The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 2 plus 4 letter word OR ELSE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
O
R
E
L
S
E
More clues leading to the result OR ELSE
- Alternatively such as could be a threat
- Threatening words occasionally worried London Stock Exchange
- Menacing suggestion: loser beaten up with rifle butt
- Somehow resolve to ignore very threatening words
- Instead of a threat
- Otherwise making a threat?
- Giving an alternative sort of threat
- University being crushed by mineral supply threat
- Alternatively, economists support currency in Lapland
- New resole as an alternative
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Threatening words" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case threatening words = or else.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.