French born (3)
I believe the answer is:
nee
'french born' is the definition.
('born' in French)
'born' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'born' could be 'ne' ('born' in French - used to indicate a birth name) and 'ne' is found within the answer.
A single letter 'e' remains which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for nee that I've seen before include "Born (to indicate maiden name)" , "Prefix denoting woman's unmarried name" , "Adjective meaning born, followed by maiden name" , "Prefix indicating maiden name of married woman" , "Born (female)" .)