The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word SHUT
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
S
H
U
T
More clues leading to the result SHUT
- After end of business, building is closed
- Cry out when there’s no oxygen close
- Close, quiet, unlit, empty
- Closed second building
- Bar Sweden’s building
- Bar found in small cabin
- To shed last of pounds added at the front
- Bubbly they use will bring sleep
- Small outhouse is locked
- Still kept up in second clamour? It’ll do for sleep
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Close" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case close = shut.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 SHUT mean?
SHUT adjective- Closed, shut.
- Narrow; confined.
- At a little distance; near.
- Intimate; well-loved.
- Oppressive; without motion or ventilation; causing a feeling of lassitude.
- (Ireland, England, Scotland) Hot, humid, with no wind.
- (of a vowel) Articulated with the tongue body relatively close to the hard palate.
- Strictly confined; carefully guarded.
- Out of the way of observation; secluded; secret; hidden.
- Nearly equal; almost evenly balanced.
- Short.
- Dense; solid; compact.
- Concise; to the point.
- Difficult to obtain.
- Parsimonious; stingy.
- Adhering strictly to a standard or original; exact.
- Accurate; careful; precise; also, attentive; undeviating; strict.
- Marked, evident.
- The act or time of shutting; close.
- A door or cover; a shutter.
- The line or place where two pieces of metal are welded together.
- To close, to stop from being open.
- To close, to stop being open.
- To close a business temporarily, or (of a business) to be closed.
- To confine in an enclosed area.
- To catch or snag in the act of shutting something.
- To preclude; to exclude; to bar out.
- Closed.
- A narrow alley or passage acting as a short cut through the buildings between two streets.