Blue as a lory can be (5)
I believe the answer is:
royal
'blue' is the definition.
(royal blue is a kind of blue)
'a lory can be' is the wordplay.
'can be' indicates anagramming the letters.
'a'+'lory'='alory'
'alory' is an anagram of 'ROYAL'.
'as' is the link.
(Other definitions for royal that I've seen before include "Old gold coin -- stag with 12 or more points" , "Befitting a monarch" , "Relating to a sovereign" , "Suitable for king or queen" , "Relating to kings/queens" .)