Tot has a play (5)
I believe the answer is:
drama
'play' is the definition.
('drama' can be a synonym of 'play')
'tot has a' is the wordplay.
'tot' becomes 'dram' (I've seen this before).
'has' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'dram'+'a'='DRAMA'
(Other definitions for drama that I've seen before include "Literary genre for the theatre" , "show of histrionics" , "Stage play, may be exciting" , "Literary genre for the stage" , "shared interest of 6 & 12 [VERDI & SHAKESPEARE]" .)