Poe item trashed as example (7)
I believe the answer is:
epitome
'example' is the definition.
(epitome is a kind of example)
'poe item trashed' is the wordplay.
'trashed' is an anagram indicator.
'poe'+'item'='poeitem'
'poeitem' anagrammed gives 'EPITOME'.
'as' is the link.
(Other definitions for epitome that I've seen before include "Summary of a written work" , "Perfect example of a quality" , "classic example" , "Something embodying perfectly a stated quality or idea" , "Archetype, typical example" .)