Low-life needs time with brief (4)
I believe the answer is:
curt
'brief' is the definition.
('curt' can be a synonym of 'brief')
'low-life needs time' is the wordplay.
'low-life' becomes 'cur'.
'needs' says to put letters next to each other.
'time' becomes 't'.
'cur'+'t'='CURT'
'with' is the link.
(Other definitions for curt that I've seen before include "Rude" , "Brief, dismissive" , "Brief and brusque" , "Unceremonious" , "Brusquely succinct" .)