Crossword Genius

Has hotel in lean urban area (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

township

'urban area' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'has hotel in lean' is the wordplay.
'has' becomes 'owns' ('own' can be a synonym of 'have'**).
'hotel' becomes 'h' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'lean' becomes 'tip' ('tip' can be a synonym of 'lean').
'owns'+'h'='ownsh'
'ownsh' going into 'tip' is 'TOWNSHIP'.

(Other definitions for township that I've seen before include "Poor suburb (South Africa) - county division (US) - part of parish (England)" , "Old manor" , "farm in Scotland (shared with other tenants)" , "Small community" , "Settlement" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.