Possibly respects apparitions (8)
I believe the answer is:
spectres
'apparitions' is the definition.
(I know this)
'possibly respects' is the wordplay.
'possibly' is an anagram indicator.
'respects' is an anagram of 'SPECTRES'.
(Other definitions for spectres that I've seen before include "Phantoms, apparitions" , "Pay respects to ghosts" , "Respects, being spirits" , "Ghostly apparitions" , "Ghosts, shades" .)