Pardons laughter, somewhat, getting offensive (9)
I believe the answer is:
onslaught
'offensive' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'pardons laughter somewhat' is the wordplay.
'somewhat' indicates a hidden word.
'ONSLAUGHT' is hidden within 'pardons laughter'.
'getting' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for onslaught that I've seen before include "Heavy attack" , "Aggressive action" , "Barrage" , "offensive action" , "Assault" .)