Short story on claw (5)
I believe the answer is:
talon
'claw' is the definition.
(talon is a kind of claw)
'short story on' is the wordplay.
'short' means to remove the last letter.
'story' becomes 'tale' (synonyms).
'tale' with its last letter taken off is 'tal'.
'tal'+'on'='TALON'
(Other definitions for talon that I've seen before include "Raptor's claw" , "Sharp hooked claw" , "Bird of prey's claw" , "Bird's claw" , "Raptor" .)