She gives an article to a boy (5)
I believe the answer is:
paula
'she' is the definition.
'an article to a boy' is the wordplay.
'an article' becomes 'a' (indefinite article).
'to a' means one lot of letters go next to another (I've seen this in other clues).
'boy' becomes 'paul' (**).
'a' put after 'paul' is 'PAULA'.
'gives' is the link.
(Other definitions for paula that I've seen before include "- Radcliffe, British distance runner" , "Girl" , "-- Radcliffe, English long-distance runner" , "Girl's name" .)