Begs the little devils to absorb knowledge (8)
I believe the answer is:
implores
'begs' is the definition.
('implore' can be a synonym of 'beg')
'the little devils to absorb knowledge' is the wordplay.
'the little devils' becomes 'imps' (I've seen this before).
'to absorb' is an insertion indicator.
'knowledge' becomes 'lore' (lore is a kind of knowledge**).
'imps' enclosing 'lore' is 'IMPLORES'.
(Other definitions for implores that I've seen before include "Begs, beseeches" , "appeals" , "Solicits" , "Begs earnestly - simple or what" , "Entreats, begs" .)