Take with difficulty — or with ease? (5)
I believe the answer is:
wrest
'take with difficulty' is the definition.
(as in wresting control of something)
'with ease?' is the wordplay.
'with' becomes 'w' (short for with).
'ease?' becomes 'rest' ('rest' can be a synonym of 'ease').
'w'+'rest'='WREST'
'or' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for wrest that I've seen before include "Forcibly pull (something from someone's grip)" , "Take away by force" , "Remove with force" , "Forcibly pull away" , "Strew (anag.)" .)