Close to nine, dawn raid put off from earlier time (9)
I believe the answer is:
edwardian
'earlier time' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I cannot see how they can define each other.
'close to nine dawn raid put off' is the wordplay.
'close to' suggests the final letters (the close/ending of).
'put off' is an anagram indicator.
The final letter of 'nine' is 'e'.
'dawn'+'raid'='dawnraid'
'dawnraid' with letters rearranged gives 'dwardian'.
'e'+'dwardian'='EDWARDIAN'
'from' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for edwardian that I've seen before include "from early twentieth century" , "Of the fashion mocked by Teddy boys" , "From the years 1901 to 1910?" , "Early 20th-century" , "The age before WW1" .)