Cryptic crossword clue
Tried a politician in Northern town with Department's head 7

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word SAMPLED

I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
S
A
M
P
L
E
D

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Tried" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case tried = sampled.
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 SAMPLED mean?

SAMPLED verb
  1. To take or to test a sample or samples of.
  2. To reduce a continuous signal (such as a sound wave) to a discrete signal.
  3. To reuse a portion of (an existing sound recording) in a new piece of music.
  4. To make or show something similar to a sample.

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