Figure them to be out of the wood (3)
I believe the answer is:
elm
'wood' is the definition.
(elm is a type of tree)
'figure them to be out of' is the wordplay.
'figure' becomes 'l' (I've seen this in other clues).
'them' becomes 'em' (abbreviation).
'to be out of' indicates putting letters inside (some letters on the outside of others).
'l' put inside 'em' is 'ELM'.
'the' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for elm that I've seen before include "Tree for a Cockney tiller" , "Tree of the genus Ulmus" , "wooden" , "Tree with a Dutch disease" , "Kind of tree" .)