Face the sergeant-major inside - it's far from uplifting (6)
I believe the answer is:
dismal
'far from uplifting' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this definition defines the answer.
'face the sergeant-major inside' is the wordplay.
'face' becomes 'dial' (face of a clock).
'the sergeant major' becomes 'SM' (abbreviation for sergeant major).
'inside' indicates putting letters inside.
'dial' enclosing 'sm' is 'DISMAL'.
'it's' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for dismal that I've seen before include "Discouraging" , "'Depressing, grim (6)'" , "Gloomy and depressing like winter weather" , "describes economic science" , "down in the dumps" .)