clean out

verb

cleaned out; cleaning out; cleans out

1

: to remove unwanted things from (a room, closet, etc.)

We spent the weekend cleaning out the garage.

2

informal : to steal or take everything from (someone or something)

The thieves broke in and cleaned out the store.

3

informal : to use up all or most of the money of (someone)

Buying the house really cleaned us out. Now we're broke.

Examples of clean out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

When the golf event was originally moved to Carlton Woods in 2023, a lake located between the ninth and 18th holes was dredged, cleaned out, and netting was even installed to keep animals, including alligators, out of it so the winner could jump in after securing victory. —Mark Harris Outkick, FOXNews.com, 22 Apr. 2026

This might be cleaning out a set of drawers or sorting one or two types of toys. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 19 Apr. 2026

Similar to the lint trap in your dryer, or the filter in your air conditioner, your microwave also has a filter that needs to be cleaned out, too. —Daley Quinn, Southern Living, 16 Apr. 2026

On Wednesday, Blue Jackets players cleaned out their lockers, had exit meetings and met with the media. —Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2026

Rhymes for clean out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout