What’s needed maybe to be mother? To pater, mostly silly (6)
I believe the answer is:
teapot
'what's needed maybe to be mother?' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.
'to pater mostly silly' is the wordplay.
'mostly' means to remove the last letter (most but not all of the word).
'silly' is an anagram indicator.
'to'+'pater'='topater'
'topater' with its last letter taken away is 'topate'.
'topate' anagrammed gives 'TEAPOT'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for teapot that I've seen before include "Hot drink dispenser" , "source of refreshment" , "where one might find leaves" , "drinks dispenser - with 5d" , "Kitchen vessel with handle, lid and spout" .)