Cut flower deprived of root (5)
I believe the answer is:
sever
'cut' is the definition.
(severing is a kind of cutting)
'flower deprived of root' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'flower' could be 'r' (abbreviation for river) and 'r' is found in the answer.
The remaining letters 'seve' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for sever that I've seen before include "Put an end to (connection or relationship)" , "Cut right off" , "Cut apart, maybe a relationship" , "Divorce" , "Disconnect" .)