NY Times Crossword
February 27, 2013
Daniel Kantor
(Title shown below)

The four phrases below each conceal the same word. The letters of this word are consecutive, but they are not in the correct left-to-right order. What is the jumbled word, and what would be a good clue and its answer for the "reveal" of this puzzle?

GREAT HORNED OWLS
COMPUTER HACKERS
SECRET HANDSHAKE
SEEN BUT NOT HEARD

Answer:

The jumbled word is HEART:

gREAT Horned owls
compuTER HAckers
secRET HAndshake
seen but noT HEARd

The "reveal" clue was DECISION REVERSAL, answered by CHANGE OF HEART.