Delicately coloured plates broken (6)
I believe the answer is:
pastel
'delicately coloured' is the definition.
The answer and definition are not the same part of speech. However, past participle verbs and adjectives sometimes define each other.
'plates broken' is the wordplay.
'broken' is an anagram indicator.
'plates' is an anagram of 'PASTEL'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for pastel that I've seen before include "Outmoded" , "Drawing crayon; light shade" , "Chalk-like crayon" , "Crayon used in art" , "Soft shade (of a colour)" .)