Dog left to play with stones on the ice (4)
I believe the answer is:
curl
'play with stones on the ice' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.
'dog left' is the wordplay.
'dog' becomes 'cur' (both can mean a despicable person).
'left' becomes 'l' (common abbreviation).
'cur'+'l'='CURL'
'to' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for curl that I've seen before include "Spiral or coil" , "Ringlet of hair" , "Force into a spiral" , "Play on ice" , "Twist (e.g. of hair)" .)