An attempt to embarrass (5)
I believe the answer is:
abash
'embarrass' is the definition.
(I know that embarrass can be written as abash)
'an attempt' is the wordplay.
'an' becomes 'a'.
'attempt' becomes 'bash' (I've seen this before).
'a'+'bash'='ABASH'
'to' is the link.
(Other definitions for abash that I've seen before include "Strike with embarrassment" , "Affront" , "Rattle" , "disgrace" , "Embarrass" .)