The Italian king’s type (3)
I believe the answer is:
ilk
'type' is the definition.
(ilk can mean a type or kind)
'the italian king's' is the wordplay.
'the italian' becomes 'il' ('the' in Italian).
'king' becomes 'K' (abbreviation for king in chess).
'il'+'k'='ILK'
(Other definitions for ilk that I've seen before include "Type of person similar to one already mentioned" , "Kind, class" , "Type of milksop" , "Kind of silks" , "A certain type of person" .)