Speak for (9)
I believe the answer is:
represent
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">speak for</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(thesaurus)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is the entire clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for represent that I've seen before include "Play the part" , "Stand for or symbolise" , "Act for" , "Serve as a symbol for" , "Speak on behalf" .)