Little men pushed to the fore (5)
I believe the answer is:
pawns
'little men' is the definition.
'pawns' can be an answer for 'men' (pawn is a kind of man). I am unsure of the 'little' bit.
I don't understand how the rest of the clue works.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for pawns that I've seen before include "The foot-soldiers in chess" , "made pledges" , "Chess pieces" , "Puts into hock" , "Minor chessmen" .)