Leader briefly turns up, making you cry (3)
I believe the answer is:
sob
'cry' is the definition.
(I know that sob is a more specific form of the action cry)
'leader briefly turns up' is the wordplay.
'leader' becomes 'boss' (boss is a kind of leader).
'briefly' means to remove the last letter.
'turns up' says the letters should be written in reverse.
'boss' with its last letter taken off is 'bos'.
'bos' in reverse letter order is 'SOB'.
'making you' is the link.
(Other definitions for sob that I've seen before include "Snivel" , "Weep heavily, wail" , "Weep uncontrollably" , "Weeping gasp" , "Wep convulsively" .)