cleanup

1 of 3

noun

clean·​up ˈklēn-ˌəp 

1

: an act or instance of cleaning

The children helped with the cleanup.

2

: an exceptionally large profit

made a cleanup [=killing] when he sold his stocks

cleanup

2 of 3

adjective

: being in the fourth position in the batting order of a baseball team

a cleanup hitter

cleanup adverb

clean up

3 of 3

verb

cleaned up; cleaning up; cleans up

intransitive verb

1

: to make a spectacular profit in a business enterprise or a killing in speculation or gambling

2

: to become free of drug or alcohol addiction

I always cleaned up for tours. … By the end of the tour, I'm perfectly clean and should have stayed sober.

—Keith Richards

Examples of cleanup in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Close the restrooms and the city will be forced to spend more on sidewalk sanitation, environmental cleanup, emergency medical care, policing, complaint response and preventable disease mitigation. —Francesca Torriani, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 June 2026

The latest move comes as Beijing intensifies a broader cleanup of China’s financial sector under securities regulator Wu Qing, while simultaneously tightening oversight over cross-border capital flows and financial risk. —Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 2 June 2026

Adjective

Volunteers from the Salvation Army of Arkansas, the American Red Cross, and Baptist Disaster Relief arrived in town throughout the day on Friday to assist with cleanup efforts and support. —Josh Kelly, Oklahoman, 25 Apr. 2026

Johnston said some of the risks could’ve been avoided if the state committed to proper safeguards, such as post-cleanup sampling, sooner. —Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2026

Verb

These include small but powerful things, like making coffee, cleaning up messes, handling obscure admin tasks, managing owners and external reporting, managing cash flow, improving legal contracts, resolving legal conflicts—and staying positive amid times of extreme crisis. —Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026

Exiting these TSAs, separation costs, and investment in technology are expected to result in a slight operating margin headwind during the company's transition period but should lead to solid margin gains once it's all cleaned up. —Jeff Marks, CNBC, 1 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

see clean entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1872, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1912, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1920, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for cleanup

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup
• pickup

Kids Definition

cleanup

noun

clean·​up

ˈklē-ˌnəp

: an act or instance of cleaning

helped with the cleanup after the meal