Cryptic crossword clue
Working and, at that point, certain to be emotionally distressed 2,3,7

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 2 plus 3 plus 7 letter word ON THE REBOUND

I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
O
N
T
H
E
R
E
B
O
U
N
D

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "emotionally distressed" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case emotionally distressed = on the rebound.
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.

Crossword Answer definitions

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