Hesitation before a stage in time (3)
I believe the answer is:
era
'stage in time' is the definition.
'era' can be an answer for 'time' (era is a kind of time). I am not certain of the 'stage in' bit.
'hesitation before a' is the wordplay.
'hesitation' becomes 'er' (sound used when hesitating).
'before' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'er'+'a'='ERA'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for era that I've seen before include "quite some time" , "Long stretch" , "Characteristic period" , "Series of years" , "Long period of time" .)