Blasphemous academic again cut short (7)
I believe the answer is:
profane
'blasphemous' is the definition.
('profane' can be similar in meaning to 'blasphemous')
'academic again cut short' is the wordplay.
'academic' becomes 'prof'.
'again' becomes 'anew' (I've seen this before).
'cut short' means to remove the last letter.
'anew' with its final letter removed is 'ane'.
'prof'+'ane'='PROFANE'
(Other definitions for profane that I've seen before include "Sacrilegious or blasphemous" , "Secular; blasphemous" , "Blasphemous, irreligious" , "improper use" , "Contemptuous of sacred things" .)