The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word EMMY
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
E
M
M
Y
More clues leading to the result EMMY
- TV award this writer rejected? Goodness!
- Unfinished novel, Hemingway's last, gets award
- . Award ceremony insiders mass virtually in the end
- Redeem myself, partly to get an award
- Award writer rejected – what a surprise!
- Madame sent back Yankee award
- Topless prize award!
- Little space writer’s given for award
- Gracious after setter returns award
- Horrible memory, after being stripped of gold award
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "award!" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case award! = emmy.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.