Require the French hypodermic (6)
I believe the answer is:
needle
'hypodermic' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both man-made objects as well as being singular nouns.
Maybe there's a link between them I don't understand?
'require the french' is the wordplay.
'require' becomes 'need' (synonyms).
'the french' becomes 'le' ('the' in French).
'need'+'le'='NEEDLE'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for needle that I've seen before include "narrow-eyed one" , "Thin pointer; antagonise" , "It's vital to baste" , "It indicates the reading on a measuring instrument" , "Wind up" .)