To Yoda, a childish imitation (3)
I believe the answer is:
toy
'a childish imitation' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both man-made objects as well as being singular nouns.
Maybe they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'to yoda' is the wordplay.
'yoda' becomes 'y' (this could be a standard abbreviation of which I'm unaware).
'to'+'y'='TOY'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for toy that I've seen before include "A child's plaything" , "Object for a child to play with" , "Miniature (dog)" , "Small breed" , "Teddy or Dolly" .)