The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word KNEE-DEEP
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
K
N
E
E
-
D
E
E
P
More clues leading to the result KNEE-DEEP
- Not submerged, but half-way to the bottom
- Greatly involved, want to be in store for the future
- Want to have backward look around at water level
- Very involved requirement in store
- Obligation in store as a wader?
- Want to occupy fort to a certain extent
- Heavily involved in poverty: food banks
- Highly involved in store, stocking what is necessary
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Heavily involved" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case heavily involved = knee-deep.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 KNEE-DEEP mean?
KNEE-DEEP adjective- Reaching up to the knees.
- Submerged to the knees.
- (by extension) Deeply involved in something, or preoccupied with something.