Not often found in polar areas (4)
I believe the answer is:
rare
'not often found' is the definition.
The answer and definition are not the same part of speech. However, past participle verbs and adjectives occasionally mean the same thing.
'in polar areas' is the wordplay.
'in' indicates the answer is hidden within the clue.
'RARE' is hidden within 'polar areas'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for rare that I've seen before include "Ben Jonson was considered so" , "having few matches?" , "Not easily come by like undercooked meat" , "Very scarce, hardly cooked" , "Not well done!" .)