The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word BALM
I've seen this crossword clue in Independent
B
A
L
M
More clues leading to the result BALM
- Comfort male dog from the east
- Ointment one gets from some herbal medicines
- Comfort found in herbal medicine
- Some herbal medicine?
- Aromatic substance found in herbal medicine
- Left in fairy queen’s back ointment
- What is soothing in herbal mixture
- Oil found in herbal medicine
- Ointment from research centre spilled over motorway
- Ointment found among herbal medicines
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "ointment" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case ointment = balm.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 BALM mean?
BALM noun- Any of various aromatic resins exuded from certain plants, especially trees of the genus Commiphora of Africa, Arabia and India and Myroxylon of South America.
- A plant or tree yielding such substance.
- Any soothing oil or lotion, especially an aromatic one.
- Something soothing.
- The lemon balm, Melissa officinalis
- Any of a number of other aromatic herbs with a similar citrus-like scent, such as bee balm and horse balm.
- To anoint with balm, or with anything medicinal.
- To soothe; to mitigate.