Cryptic crossword clue
Welcome back occasional elegant adult learner to be graded 12

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 12 letter word HIERARCHICAL

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
H
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Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "graded" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case graded = hierarchical.
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 HIERARCHICAL mean?

HIERARCHICAL adjective
  1. Pertaining to a hierarchy.
  2. Of or pertaining to an ecclesiastic or priestly order.
  3. Classified or arranged according to various criteria into successive ranks or grades.

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