Large Italian male is supple (5)
I believe the answer is:
lithe
'supple' is the definition.
('lithe' can be a synonym of 'supple')
'large italian male' is the wordplay.
'large' becomes 'l'.
'italian' becomes 'it'.
'male' becomes 'he'.
'l'+'it'+'he'='LITHE'
'is' is the link.
(Other definitions for lithe that I've seen before include "Physically flexible or supple" , "Lissom, supple" , "flex with no difficulty" , "Don -, opera by Verdi" , "Able to move and bend gracefully" .)