Ring devout woman about word (4)
I believe the answer is:
noun
'word' is the definition.
(noun is a kind of word)
'ring devout woman about' is the wordplay.
'ring' becomes 'O' (O is the shape of a ring).
'devout woman' becomes 'nun' (I've seen this before).
'about' indicates putting letters inside.
'o' inserted within 'nun' is 'NOUN'.
(Other definitions for noun that I've seen before include "Word referring to person, place or thing" , "Naming word (grammar)" , "Person, place, thing, state or quality?" , "Part of speech identifying a person, place or thing" , "Word that refers to a person, place or thing" .)