Colourful picture of English history learner absorbs (6)
I believe the answer is:
pastel
'colourful' is the definition.
Both the answer and definition are adjectives. Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'picture of english history learner absorbs' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'english' could be 'e' (abbreviation as in OED) and 'e' is found in the answer.
'history' could be 'past' (I've seen this before) and 'past' is present in the answer.
'learner' could be 'l' (as in a learner driver with L-plates on their car) and 'l' is found in the answer.
No letters remain.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for pastel that I've seen before include "Staple (anag)" , "Of a colour, subtle" , "Crayon - gentle shade of colour" , "Pleats of a light colour" , "Delicate colour found in plates" .)