The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word INFERENCE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
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More clues leading to the result INFERENCE
- What was gathered at the wicket about to penetrate boundary?
- Isn’t regularly on guard outside, one’s deduced
- Barrier Reef only half protected – going under in consequence
- What’s gathered within barrier engineers brought in
- Popular monarch protected within barrier, it’s concluded
- Radio problem? Three characters get ejected as conclusion
- Conclusion sees trendy criminal about to be jailed
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "What was gathered" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case what was gathered = inference.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 INFERENCE mean?
INFERENCE noun- The act or process of inferring by deduction or induction.
- That which is inferred; a truth or proposition drawn from another which is admitted or supposed to be true; a conclusion; a deduction.