mop-up

1 of 2

noun

ˈmäp-ˌəp 

often attributive

: a concluding action or phase

mop up

2 of 2

verb

mopped up; mopping up; mops up

transitive verb

1

British : to consume eagerly

2

: to gather as if by absorbing

also : garner

mopped up all the awards

3

: to overcome decisively : trounce

mopped up their rivals

4

: to clear (an area) of remaining pockets of resistance in the wake of a military offensive

intransitive verb

: to complete a project, transaction, or task

I'm almost done with the project. I just need a little time to mop up.

Synonyms of mop-up

Noun

• ending
• conclusion
• end
• finale
• finish
• closing
• culmination

Examples of mop-up in a Sentence

Noun

the general announced that the remaining fighting would be only a mop-up to a war that was all but over

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Prior to being held out of Saturday night’s victory over the visiting Memphis Grizzlies, Jovic had fallen out of the rotation, playing only three minutes of mop-up duty in Friday night’s road victory over the Atlanta Hawks. —Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 24 Feb. 2026

Gardner said the department has since developed a post-fire policy and mop-up procedures after the Mountain fire. —Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 31 Jan. 2026

Verb

An exodus of Western brands, including McDonald's, Starbucks and Apple, allowed Russian companies to mop up market share. —Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 24 Feb. 2026

DeMar DeRozan just slammed a water bottle to the floor, sending several courtside attendants scurrying into action to mop up the mess. —Hector Amezcua, Sacbee.com, 10 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1900, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1811, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for mop-up

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