Tries to support small cuts (6)
I believe the answer is:
shears
'cuts' is the definition.
(shearing is a kind of cutting)
'tries to support small' is the wordplay.
'tries' becomes 'hears' (as in trying or hearing in a trial).
'to support' means one lot of letters go next to another (in a down clue, some letters hold others up).
'small' becomes 's' (abbreviation - e.g. clothes size).
'hears' put after 's' is 'SHEARS'.
(Other definitions for shears that I've seen before include "Pruners" , "Big scissors" , "Large scissors for shaving sheep" , "Cutting tool, for hedges perhaps" , "Large scissors as for removing wool from sheep" .)