The Clue
A bad one may contain holes (4 letter answer)
The Answer
PLOT
Tags
Notes
The answer PLOT is seen frequently, appearing about once every 140 puzzles.
Related Clues
Cabal
Collude
Conspiracy
Conspire
Garden ___
One to grow on?
Intrigue
Machinations
Scheme
Storyline
"The ___ thickens"
Basic thread
Cabal's plans
Christie forte
Garden area
Gunpowder was one
Heart of fiction
Hitchcock's "Family ___"
Makings of a coup
Map (out)
Narrative structure
Novel creation
Novel idea
Novel thread
Novelist's need
Paranoiac's worry
Patch of ground
Piece of ground
Ringleader's forte
Secret plan
Story line
Underhanded plan
Guy Fawkes's forte
It sometimes thickens
Small bit of land
This often thickens
Definition
PLOT as a noun:
1. (plot, secret plan, game) = a secret scheme to do something (especially something underhand or illegal); "they concocted a plot to discredit the governor"; "I saw through his little game from the start"
2. (plot, plot of ground, patch) = a small area of ground covered by specific vegetation; "a bean plot"; "a cabbage patch"; "a briar patch"
3. the story that is told in a novel or play or movie etc.; "the characters were well drawn but the plot was banal"
4. a chart or map showing the movements or progress of an object
PLOT as a verb:
1. plan secretly, usually something illegal; "They plotted the overthrow of the government"
2. (diagram, plot) = make a schematic or technical drawing of that shows how things work or how they are constructed
3. (plat, plot) = make a plat of; "Plat the town"