The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word TROPICS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
T
R
O
P
I
C
S
More clues leading to the result TROPICS
- Subjects about right for the Torrid Zone
- King protected by subjects in heated situations
- Revolutionary nature film’s set in Middle-earth
- I see through play that’s going round in circles
- World circles points round radius
- River in question’s somewhere near the Equator
- Some respite introduced into subjects of torrid zones
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "heated situations" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case heated situations = tropics.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 TROPICS mean?
TROPICS noun- The region of the Earth centred on the equator and lying between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn and characterized by a hot climate.