Fledgling on me repelled man (8)
I believe the answer is:
emergent
'fledgling' is the definition.
Both the definition and answer are adjectives. Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'on me repelled man' is the wordplay.
'on' becomes 're' ('on' can be mean 'with reference to').
'repelled' is a reversal indicator.
'man' becomes 'gent' (gent is a kind of man).
're'+'me'='reme'
'reme' written backwards gives 'emer'.
'emer'+'gent'='EMERGENT'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for emergent that I've seen before include "coming into view" , "Suddenly appearing" , "Breaking" , "Newly independent" , "Greet men (anag) - developing" .)