The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word ENGLAND
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
E
N
G
L
A
N
D
More clues leading to the result ENGLAND
- Country eleven extremely pleased to secure win at last
- In from France, happy to embrace new country
- No good entering antelope country
- No good entering bovine team in white?
- Ultimately, the swollen thyroid may be in a state
- Cricket team dash to get ball?
- Glen rocks with Scottish neighbour
- Country nurse and a thing he might check?
- Country with good local network, finally?
- Defile and glen in the country
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "a state" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case a state = england.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.