A dense figure cast a shadow (9)

I believe the answer is:

adumbrate

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'a shadow' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'a dense figure cast' is the wordplay.
'dense' becomes 'dumb' (synonyms).
'figure cast' becomes 'rate' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'a'+'dumb'+'rate'='ADUMBRATE'

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(Other definitions for adumbrate that I've seen before include "Obscure" , "Faintly indicate" , "Give a faint idea of; overshadow" , "Show faintly, in outline" , "Indicate or describe in a general way" .)

I've seen this clue in The Hindu.

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