Barely embraces partner (6)
I believe the answer is:
spouse
'partner' is the definition.
(I know that partner can be written as spouse)
'barely embraces' is the wordplay.
'barely' indicates the central letters (the word is bare of its external letters).
'embraces' becomes 'espouses' ('espouse' can be a synonym of 'embrace').
The middle of 'espouses' is 'SPOUSE'.
(Other definitions for spouse that I've seen before include "Partner in marriage" , "Very hot and dry" , "Husband or wife" , "Consort" , "Elizabethan dance" .)