Distinction made by sergeants (9)
I believe the answer is:
greatness
'distinction' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'made by sergeants' is the wordplay.
'made by' indicates an anagram (another word made by the same letters).
'sergeants' anagrammed gives 'GREATNESS'.
(Other definitions for greatness that I've seen before include "Fame and importance" , "celebrity" , "Outstanding importance or largeness" , "Malvolio wasn't to fear being thrust into?" , "Immensity" .)