Playing area near a ground (5)
I believe the answer is:
arena
'playing area' is the definition.
(arena is a kind of playing area)
'near a ground' is the wordplay.
'ground' indicates an anagram (grind the letters ).
'near'+'a'='neara'
'neara' is an anagram of 'ARENA'.
(Other definitions for arena that I've seen before include "Contest venue" , "Area of endeavour" , "Central area in sports stadium" , "Cheap Prom tickets" , "Ring for contest" .)