Shakespearean king (4)
I believe the answer is:
lear
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">shakespearean king</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(King Lear)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is the entire clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for lear that I've seen before include "Tragic king in play" , "troubled king" , "Tragic Shakespearian king" , "British king in play" , "Shakespeare's tragic king (4)" .)