Crossword Genius

A symbol circulated thus, mistaken at first for hawthorn flower (3,7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

may blossom

'hawthorn flower' is the definition.

'a symbol circulated thus mistaken at first' is the wordplay.
'circulated' is an anagram indicator.
'thus' becomes 'so' ('so' can be a synonym of 'thus').
'at first' says to take the initial letters.
The first letter of 'mistaken' is 'm'.
'a'+'symbol'='asymbol'
'asymbol' is an anagram of 'mayblos'.
'mayblos'+'so'+'m'='MAY-BLOSSOM'

'for' acts as a link.

(Another definition for may blossom that I've seen is " Hawthorn flowers".)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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