Given lashings, perhaps, in a shaky diet (4)
I believe the answer is:
tied
'given lashings perhaps' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.
'shaky diet' is the wordplay.
'shaky' indicates an anagram.
'diet' with letters rearranged gives 'TIED'.
'in a' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for tied that I've seen before include "With an equal score" , "(Of pub) owned and run by a brewery" , "Restricted, bound" , "eg Scored 1-1" , "Made bow" .)