The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word RESILIENT
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
R
E
S
I
L
I
E
N
T
More clues leading to the result RESILIENT
- Tough soldiers tight-lipped about start of invasion
- Listener puzzles – one gets stuck in, never giving up?
- Spirited mum collects one, on coming first
- Tough on one mum protects
- Right to enter second exam, responding well after failure?
- Strong engineer lies inert
- Hardy villain regularly consumed by envy
- Bouncy son, one to be found stuck in opening
- Begrudge eating sirloin regularly? Tough!
- Tough soldiers meeting one protected by mum
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Tough" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case tough = resilient.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 RESILIENT mean?
RESILIENT adjective- (of objects or substances) Returning quickly to original shape after force is applied; elastic.
- (organisms or people, of systems) Returning quickly to normal after damaging events or conditions.