Friend given card in royal residence (6)
I believe the answer is:
palace
'royal residence' is the definition.
(I know that palace is a common type of royal residence)
'friend given card' is the wordplay.
'friend' becomes 'pal' (pal can mean a friend).
'given' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'card' becomes 'ace' (ace is a type of playing card).
'pal'+'ace'='PALACE'
'in' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for palace that I've seen before include "Splendid house" , "Royal residence" , "Stately mansion" , "Impressive residence of a ruler" , "See 23" .)