Dead snail, perhaps (5)
I believe the answer is:
slain
'dead' is the definition.
('slain' can be similar in meaning to 'dead')
'snail perhaps' is the wordplay.
'perhaps' indicates an anagram.
'snail' with letters rearranged gives 'SLAIN'.
(Other definitions for slain that I've seen before include "Put to the sword" , "Violently killed" , "Slaughtered" , "Killed, murdered" .)