Bore put up contribution to ground rent (4)
I believe the answer is:
nerd
'bore' is the definition.
(both can mean a boring person)
'up contribution to ground rent' is the wordplay.
'up' is a reversal indicator (in down clue: letters go upwards).
'contribution to' says the answer is hidden in the clue.
'dren' can be found hidden inside 'ground rent'.
'dren' back-to-front is 'NERD'.
'put' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for nerd that I've seen before include "Feeble person (sl.)" , "Boring person" , "Computer geek?" , "Intelligent but single-minded expert" , "Sort of chap" .)