Inadequate, backward, tardy places where males gather, perhaps (8)
I believe the answer is:
skeletal
'inadequate' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives. Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
I don't understand the remainder of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for skeletal that I've seen before include "Very thin, emaciated" , "reduced to a minimum" , "Dreadfully thin" , "Consisting of bones" , "Bony, gaunt" .)