Article crushed mite (4)
I believe the answer is:
item
'article' is the definition.
(both can mean an object or thing)
'crushed mite' is the wordplay.
'crushed' indicates an anagram.
'mite' anagrammed gives 'ITEM'.
(Other definitions for item that I've seen before include "Two people romantically linked" , "Element" , "Article, object" , "Bit of news to broadcast" , "Something on list" .)