Protective floor covering (3)
I believe the answer is:
mat
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">protective floor covering</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(I've seen this in another clue)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is all the clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for mat that I've seen before include "Small rug" , "coaster" , "Small protective floor-covering" , "carpeting" , "knot" .)