Cleared seats raised on time (5)
I believe the answer is:
swept
'cleared' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives. Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'seats raised on time' is the wordplay.
'seats' becomes 'pews' (pew is a kind of seat).
'raised' says the letters should be written in reverse (going up in a down clue).
'on' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'time' becomes 't' (abbreviation).
'pews' back-to-front is 'swep'.
'swep'+'t'='SWEPT'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for swept that I've seen before include "Wielded a broom" , "Searched; cleaned" , "what daily did" , "Cleaned by broom" , "Brushed up (dust)" .)