Hidden word · Container indicator

amid

“amid” is a hidden word indicator in cryptic crosswords.

The answer sits unbroken across the letters of consecutive words. A hidden-word indicator points to something held, buried, or partly visible.

Depending on the clue, “amid” can also act as a container indicator.

Clue types
Hidden word, Container
Subtlety
moderate
Part of speech
adverb
Themes
concealment, containment
Worked example

Flare up amid summer uptick (5)

Answer: ERUPT

Hidden-word clue. The answer ERUPT is concealed consecutively across the word join in the carrier "summer uptick" (summ-ER-UPT-ick → ER+UPT). "Flare up" is the definition (to erupt = to flare up, e.g. violence/tempers), placed at the start. "amid" is the buried concealment indicator, reading naturally as part of the surface. The surface is a single coherent, heat-themed image — tensions flaring up amid a summer uptick — which misdirects toward a weather/sales report rather than the wordplay. Validators confirm the hidden span ("er upt") and the enumeration (5).


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