The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word ANGUISH
I've seen this crossword clue in The Sunday Telegraph
A
N
G
U
I
S
H
More clues leading to the result ANGUISH
- Droop after shaking off head pain
- An effusive talk masking one's pain
- Agony, using a dreadful hotel
- Grow weak after the first severe pain
- Gun has gone off one’s in pain
- Not beginning to flag pain
- Grow weak, left out in pain
- Agony after learner’s left flag
- One brief appearance by husband creates misery
- Article to say rather too much about one’s pain
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "extreme pain" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case extreme pain = anguish.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 ANGUISH mean?
ANGUISH noun- Extreme pain, either of body or mind; excruciating distress.
- To suffer pain.
- To cause to suffer pain.