Wilder perhaps in village nearby (4)
I believe the answer is:
gene
'wilder' is the definition.
(gene wilder)
'in village nearby' is the wordplay.
'in' says the answer is hidden in the clue.
'GENE' can be found hidden inside 'village nearby'.
'perhaps' is the link.
(Other definitions for gene that I've seen before include "DNA unit" , "Part of chromosome" , "affects someone's make-up" , "Unit of heredity significance" , "Hereditary unit on chromosome" .)