Was obliged to ring and get married (4)
I believe the answer is:
owed
'was obliged to' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'ring and get married' is the wordplay.
'ring' becomes 'o' (letter resembling a ring).
'and' says to put letters next to each other.
'get married' becomes 'wed' (synonyms).
'o'+'wed'='OWED'
(Other definitions for owed that I've seen before include "In debt to" , "(Sum) due for payment" , "Was indebted" , "Was due to pay" , "Had an obligation to pay" .)