Pandemic? It surely holds country back (6)
I believe the answer is:
rustic
'country back' is the definition.
The answer and definition can be both people as well as being singular nouns.
Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'pandemic? it surely holds' is the wordplay.
'RUSTIC' is hidden backwards in amongst the letters.
But, I am not sure how the hidden word is indicated.
(Other definitions for rustic that I've seen before include "Rural, country" , "unrefined" , "Rural, countrified" , "Relating to the countryside" , "Quaintly countrified" .)