clean out

phrasal 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

There's one brief inning for each team, which its batters spend trying to pummel the ball clean out of the park time and time again. —Samanth Subramanian, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Feb. 2026

Will influencers start selling high-end neti pots to clean out our sinuses in the hopes of shrinking our noses? —Georgia Casey, Allure, 6 Feb. 2026

Downtown Los Angeles’ infamous eyesore is one step closer to being cleaned out. —Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026

The appearance was Purdy’s first since the 49ers cleaned out their lockers following a 41-6 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the divisional round. —Evan Webeck, Mercury News, 5 Feb. 2026

Rhymes for clean out

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