Tory not initially intelligent (5)
I believe the answer is:
right
'tory' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'not initially intelligent' is the wordplay.
'not initially' means to remove the first letter.
'intelligent' becomes 'bright' (similar in meaning).
'bright' with its first letter removed is 'RIGHT'.
(Other definitions for right that I've seen before include "The hand to the east when facing north" , "blue, politically" , "Just - correct - title" , "licence" , "Starboard side" .)