Strike and pound on wood (4)
I believe the answer is:
lash
'strike' is the definition.
(lashing is a kind of striking)
'pound on wood' is the wordplay.
'pound' becomes 'l' (**).
'on' says to put letters next to each other.
'wood' becomes 'ash' (I've seen this before).
'l'+'ash'='LASH'
'and' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for lash that I've seen before include "Fasten with rope; whip" , "Hit with a whip" , "over the eye" , "Whip with a sharp blow" , "Strike with a whip" .)