Crossword Genius

Spiteful nut rallied around (3-7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

ill-natured

'spiteful' is the definition.
(ill-natured means spiteful or nasty)

'nut rallied around' is the wordplay.
'around' indicates an anagram.
'nut'+'rallied'='nutrallied'
'nutrallied' anagrammed gives 'ILL-NATURED'.

(Other definitions for ill-natured that I've seen before include "Mean-spirited" , "Bad-tempered, churlish" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app