There were many before this poet (5)
I believe the answer is:
dante
'this poet' is the definition.
(Dante is an example)
'there were many before' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'many' could be 'd' and 'd' is located in the answer.
'before' could be 'ante' (I've seen this before) and 'ante' is located in the answer.
This accounts for all the letters.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for dante that I've seen before include "Finally stand before" , "Net Da a poet" , "22 [FT SETTER]" , "Inferno poet" , "Great Italian poet of 'The Divine Comedy'" .)