neaten

verb

neat·en | \ˈnē-tᵊn

neatened; neatening\ ˈnēt-niŋ ,

ˈnē-tᵊn-iŋ \

Definition of neaten

transitive verb

1 : to set in order : make neat

2 : to finish (something, such as a piece of sewing) carefully

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about neaten

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Examples of neaten in a Sentence

I am trying to neaten my desk. neatened the living room in anticipation of company

Recent Examples on the Web

Step 2: Clean Furniture Fabric Go through the house and strip and remake beds; neaten any pillows or furniture blankets. — Arianne Cohen, Woman's Day, "Here's How to Clean Your House More Efficiently," 10 Mar. 2018 When the grout has hardened slightly, use a grout shaper or your finger to neaten up the joints. — The Editors Of House Beautiful, House Beautiful, "How to Grout Tile," 11 Feb. 2015 Step 2: Clean Furniture Fabric Go through the house and strip and remake beds; neaten any pillows or furniture blankets. — Arianne Cohen, Woman's Day, "Here's How to Clean Your House More Efficiently," 16 Mar. 2017 This pruning is optional, and is done more to neaten things up than to benefit the plants. — NOLA.com, "Don't prune freeze-damaged plants just yet: 5 tips for recovering your garden," 6 Jan. 2018 Her short chapters ingeniously double back on themselves in much the same way a drawer of sweaters, neatened up by Kondo, are pleated and flattened to accordion-sharp perfection. — Maureen Corrigan, The Denver Post, "New novel by “Girl on the Train” writer fails to thrill," 4 May 2017 Step 2: Furniture Fabric Go through the house and strip and remake beds; neaten any pillows or furniture blankets. — Arianne Cohen, Woman's Day, "There's Now A Quicker Way to Clean Your House," 16 Mar. 2017 Let the slices fall to your cutting board, and don’t be tempted to neaten them. — Gabrielle Hamilton, New York Times, "On Your Way to Your New Year’s Self," 29 Dec. 2016 Plants grow a tremendous amount during an Alaska June and now is the time to neaten things up. — Jeff Lowenfels, Alaska Dispatch News, "Don’t plant mayday trees. Don’t even let your existing ones remain.," 23 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'neaten.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.