Was dependent putting the Italian back in rush? (6)
I believe the answer is:
relied
'was dependent' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'the italian back in rush?' is the wordplay.
'the italian' becomes 'il' ('the' in Italian).
'back' says the letters should be written in reverse.
'in' indicates putting letters inside.
'rush?' becomes 'reed' (I've seen this in other clues).
'il' written backwards gives 'li'.
'li' placed within 'reed' is 'RELIED'.
'putting' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for relied that I've seen before include "Had confidence" , "Banked" , "Trusted confidently, depended on" , "Assembled as before" , "Depended on or fibbed again" .)