Piece of brass returned to border (4)
I believe the answer is:
abut
'to border' is the definition.
('abut' can be a synonym of 'border')
I cannot understand how the rest of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for abut that I've seen before include "Meet" , "Join" , "Neighbour" , "Be next door to" , "Lie adjacent to" .)