Wet ring perhaps left to dry (5)
I believe the answer is:
towel
'dry' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'wet ring perhaps left' is the wordplay.
'ring' becomes 'O' (letter resembling a ring).
'perhaps' indicates an anagram.
'left' becomes 'l' (common abbreviation).
'wet'+'o'='weto'
'weto' with letters rearranged gives 'towe'.
'towe'+'l'='TOWEL'
'to' is the link.
(Other definitions for towel that I've seen before include "what sweater needs?" , "Dryer" , "Drier" , "This could dry up" , "Bathroom cloth" .)