Is this your crossword clue?
"mean" is also used as a crossword clue. If that's what you saw, the answer is often cruel (5 letters).
Definitions
To signify, intend, or be unkind; also average.
Word origin
From Middle English menen (“to intend; remember; lament; comfort”), from Old English mǣnan (“to mean, complain”), Proto-West Germanic *mainijan, from Proto-Germanic *mainijaną (“to mean, think; complain”), from Proto-Indo-European *meyn- (“to think”), or perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *meyno-, extended form of Proto-Indo-European *mey-.
Used in a sentence
“I didn't mean to knock your tooth out.”
“I mean to go to Arévalo in Spain this summer; I’ve been meaning to tell you for weeks, but I’ve just found the time.”
“I meant to take the car in for a smog check, but it slipped my mind.”
Source: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0
Used as a crossword answer2 curated clues
01“Signify”4 letters
02“Have in mind”4 letters
Not quite right?
"Search similar patterns."
M___