Member of school or university dressed in red (5)
I believe the answer is:
trout
'member of school' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I cannot understand how they can define each other.
'university dressed in red' is the wordplay.
'university' becomes 'U' (abbreviation for university).
'dressed in' means one lot of letters goes inside another (inserted letters are dressed in others).
'red' becomes 'trot' (Trotskyite, type of socialist or 'red').
'u' put inside 'trot' is 'TROUT'.
'or' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for trout that I've seen before include "Tickled fish?" , "Tasty fish, perhaps of rainbow kind" , "Fish of salmon family" , "Fish (associated with Schubert?)" , "one may be hooked" .)