Sad and is close to tears (12)
I believe the answer is:
disconsolate
'sad' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'and is close to tears' is the wordplay.
'tears' is an anagram indicator.
'and'+'is'+'close'+'to'='andiscloseto'
'andiscloseto' anagrammed gives 'DISCONSOLATE'.
(Other definitions for disconsolate that I've seen before include "Very sad or disappointed" , "Woebegone" , "Unhappy and unable to be comforted" , "Low in spirits" , "Stuck with the blues" .)