clean sweep
noun
1
: a victory in which one side or team wins every game, contest, etc.
The Red Sox won the series in a clean sweep.
The election was a clean sweep for local Democratic candidates.
2
: a complete change in something
The new governor has made a clean sweep of the staff in the governor's mansion.
Examples of clean sweep in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Swift traffics in numbers beyond comprehension – a tour that generates $1 billion in domestic ticket sales, a clean sweep of Billboard’s Top 5, a 10-minute song topping the chart in an era of TikTok attention spans – but her greatest feat may arrive on Super Bowl Sunday.
—
Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 6 Feb. 2024
White recently completed a clean sweep of this year’s TV awards season, winning an Emmy for his work on season 1 of The Bear and a Golden Globe, a SAG Award, and a Critics Choice Award for his performance on season 2 of the show.
—Staff Author, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2024
Female artists made a clean sweep of the three awards for international artists (that is, artists who hail from outside the U.K.).
—Paul Grein, Billboard, 2 Mar. 2024
Killer Mike is still on a victory lap following a clean sweep at the recent Grammy Awards, and on Monday that tour placed him on a panel at The View.
—Chris Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2024
The 49ers finished off a clean sweep of the NFC's other playoff teams.
—Josh Dubow, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2024
The clean sweep of the square did not last for long, however.
—Roger Owen, Foreign Affairs, 6 Aug. 2013
Swift has a clean sweep of the top three, as former No. 1 Midnights bolts 8-2 (11,000; up 91%) following its double win at the Grammy Awards (Feb. 4) for album of the year and best pop vocal album, plus Swift’s chart-topping Lover rises 4-3 with nearly 11,000 sold (up 51%).
—Keith Caulfield, Billboard, 16 Feb. 2024
The top high-trust countries are a clean sweep of the top spots on Transparency International’s rankings of corruption as perceived by both the public and business leaders, with Denmark currently on top.
—Marshall Ingwerson, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Feb. 2024
Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 6 Feb. 2024
White recently completed a clean sweep of this year’s TV awards season, winning an Emmy for his work on season 1 of The Bear and a Golden Globe, a SAG Award, and a Critics Choice Award for his performance on season 2 of the show.
—Staff Author, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2024
Female artists made a clean sweep of the three awards for international artists (that is, artists who hail from outside the U.K.).
—Paul Grein, Billboard, 2 Mar. 2024
Killer Mike is still on a victory lap following a clean sweep at the recent Grammy Awards, and on Monday that tour placed him on a panel at The View.
—Chris Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2024
The 49ers finished off a clean sweep of the NFC's other playoff teams.
—Josh Dubow, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2024
The clean sweep of the square did not last for long, however.
—Roger Owen, Foreign Affairs, 6 Aug. 2013
Swift has a clean sweep of the top three, as former No. 1 Midnights bolts 8-2 (11,000; up 91%) following its double win at the Grammy Awards (Feb. 4) for album of the year and best pop vocal album, plus Swift’s chart-topping Lover rises 4-3 with nearly 11,000 sold (up 51%).
—Keith Caulfield, Billboard, 16 Feb. 2024
The top high-trust countries are a clean sweep of the top spots on Transparency International’s rankings of corruption as perceived by both the public and business leaders, with Denmark currently on top.
—Marshall Ingwerson, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clean sweep.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near clean sweep
Cite this Entry
“Clean sweep.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clean%20sweep. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share