Mean gal, drying out (9)
I believe the answer is:
niggardly
'mean' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'gal drying out' is the wordplay.
'out' indicates an anagram (out can mean wrong or inaccurate).
'gal'+'drying'='galdrying'
'galdrying' with letters rearranged gives 'NIGGARDLY'.
(Other definitions for niggardly that I've seen before include "Mean" , "Stingy and miserly" , "Tight-fisted" , "Meagre and given grudgingly" .)