Says .. "Hart broke the little receptacles!" (8)
I believe the answer is:
ashtrays
'the little receptacles' is the definition.
The answer and definition can be both man-made objects as well as being plural nouns.
Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'says hart broke' is the wordplay.
'broke' indicates anagramming the letters.
'says'+'hart'='sayshart'
'sayshart' with letters rearranged gives 'ASHTRAYS'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for ashtrays that I've seen before include "Receptacles for smokers" , "Receptacles for tobacco detritus" , "Receptacles removed from pub" , "smokers' necessities" , "where fags end up" .)