Iron skirt, born ladylike (8)
I believe the answer is:
feminine
'ladylike' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'iron skirt born' is the wordplay.
'iron' becomes 'Fe' (Fe is the chemical symbol for iron).
'skirt' becomes 'mini' (a mini skirt).
'born' becomes 'ne' ('born' in French - used to indicate a birth name).
'fe'+'mini'+'ne'='FEMININE'
(Other definitions for feminine that I've seen before include "Womanly" , "for the ladies?" , "Female" , "Womanlike" , "Woman's" .)