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"dear" is also used as a crossword clue. If that's what you saw, the answer is often beloved (7 letters).
Definitions
Beloved, valued, or expensive.
Word origin
From Middle English dere (“fierce, severe, hard, deadly”), from Old English dēor, dȳr (“brave, bold; severe, dire, vehement”), from Proto-Germanic *deuzaz. Cognate with the above.
Used in a sentence
“The dearer the jewel, the greater the love expressed.”
“There's more depends on this than on the value. The dearest ring in Venice will I give you, And find it out by proclamation: Only for this, I pray you, pardon me.”
“This water is sold for 50 cents per ton, which is not dear under the circumstances.”
Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0
Used as a crossword answer2 curated clues
01“Treasured”4 letters
02“Valued and loved”4 letters
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