Take in study defending male convict (7)
I believe the answer is:
condemn
'convict' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'take in study defending male' is the wordplay.
'take in' becomes 'con' (I've seen this in another clue).
'study' becomes 'den' (term for a study or office).
'defending' indicates putting letters inside (inserted letters are defended).
'male' becomes 'm' (common abbreviation).
'den' placed around 'm' is 'demn'.
'con'+'demn'='CONDEMN'
(Other definitions for condemn that I've seen before include "Declare unfit for use" , "Reprove" , "Sentence eg to imprisonment" , "Denounce" , "Completely disapprove of" .)