Old man with revered figure of yore (4)
I believe the answer is:
past
'of yore' is the definition.
(as in days of yore)
'old man with revered figure' is the wordplay.
'old man' becomes 'pa' (both can mean someone's father).
'with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'revered figure' becomes 'st' (saint).
'pa'+'st'='PAST'
(Other definitions for past that I've seen before include "over and done with" , "A person's earlier life history" , "Finished, gone" , "Yesteryear" , "historical times" .)