Head of army, for example, is giving protection (5)
I believe the answer is:
aegis
'protection' is the definition.
('aegis' can be a synonym of 'protection')
'head of army for example is' is the wordplay.
'head of' indicates taking the first letters.
'for example' becomes 'eg' ('e.g.' can be a synonym of 'for example').
The initial letter of 'army' is 'a'.
'a'+'eg'+'is'='AEGIS'
'giving' is the link.
(Other definitions for aegis that I've seen before include "Advocacy" , "Protection - guardianship" , "Protection - patronage" , "Auspices" , "Protection (originally of Zeus)" .)