Crossword Genius

Hot Romeo spotted in local (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

tropical

'hot' is the definition.
(similar in meaning)

'romeo spotted in local' is the wordplay.
'romeo' becomes 'r' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'spotted in' is an insertion indicator.
'local' becomes 'topical' (similar in meaning).
'r' inserted into 'topical' is 'TROPICAL'.

(Other definitions for tropical that I've seen before include "rainforest areas" , "Of regions north and south of the Equator" , "it could be too hot" , "Belonging to hot regions" , "extremely warm" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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