The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word COWER
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
C
O
W
E
R
More clues leading to the result COWER
- Business we run will make you cringe
- Bully leading female here to see shrink
- Cringe — or one who'll make you do so?
- We run behind officer and hide in fear
- Appear frightened to have debt while in credit
- Act weakly to have debts seized by creditor
- I say restricting crossword setters is to display fear!
- A hundred and one in debt shrink in fear
- In fear, crouch lower before Her Majesty
- Cringe, seeing cowcatcher missing Dolly perhaps
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Appear frightened" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case appear frightened = cower.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does COWER mean?
COWER verb- To crouch or cringe, or to avoid or shy away from something, in fear.
- To crouch in general.
- To cause to cower; to frighten into submission.
- To cherish with care.