Uncovered animal in report (4)
I believe the answer is:
bare
'uncovered' is the definition.
(similar in meaning)
'animal in report' is the wordplay.
'animal' becomes 'bear' (bear is a kind of animal).
'in report' indicates a 'sounds like' (homophone) clue (ie reportedly, \'we hear\').
'bear' is a homophone of 'BARE'.
(Other definitions for bare that I've seen before include "State of deciduous tree in winter" , "Nude; uncover" , "Denuded" , "Carried" , "Not covered" .)