Suppose one needs space in retirement following work (5)
I believe the answer is:
opine
'suppose' is the definition.
(I know that suppose can be written as opine)
'one needs space in retirement following work' is the wordplay.
'one needs' becomes 'i' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'space' becomes 'en' (in printing, a space as wide as a letter 'n').
'in retirement' says the letters should be written in reverse (retire can mean to go back or backwards).
'following' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'work' becomes 'op' (abbreviation for opus).
'en' backwards is 'ne'.
'i'+'ne'='ine'
'ine' put after 'op' is 'OPINE'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for opine that I've seen before include "judge" , "Suggest" , "Express one's view" , "Express one's opinion openly" , "Think - express a view" .)