One stirs shortly after meal, papa assumed (8)
I believe the answer is:
teaspoon
'one stirs shortly after meal papa assumed' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.
'shortly after meal papa assumed' is the wordplay.
'shortly' becomes 'soon' ('soon' can be a synonym of 'shortly'**).
'after' says to put letters next to each other.
'meal' becomes 'tea' (tea is a kind of meal).
'papa' becomes 'p' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'assumed' indicates putting letters inside.
'soon' after 'tea' is 'teasoon'.
'teasoon' enclosing 'p' is 'TEASPOON'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for teaspoon that I've seen before include "Coffee stirrer?" , "Small medicine dispensing unit" , "Small item of cutlery (8)" , "With OAP onset, use it at table" , "Small stirrer" .)