Substitute Dopey, initially, for Bashful? (8)
I believe the answer is:
reserved
'bashful?' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'substitute dopey' is the wordplay.
'substitute' becomes 'reserve' ('reserve' can be a synonym of 'substitute').
'dopey' becomes 'd' (this could be a standard abbreviation I've not previously seen).
'reserve'+'d'='RESERVED'
'initially for' is the link.
This may not be correct. Some or all of it may be part of another bit of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for reserved that I've seen before include "Set aside, earmarked" , "without emotion" , "Unemotional; put by" , "Aloof" , "not forthcoming" .)