sweep up

verb

swept up; sweeping up; sweeps up

1

: to remove dust, dirt, etc., from (something) by using a broom or brush

When I was sweeping up, I found an earring that I had lost.

Can you please sweep up the porch?

2

: to remove (something, such as dust, dirt, etc.) from a surface by using a broom or brush

She swept up the broken glass.

3

: to pick up (someone or something) in one quick, continuous motion

She swept the baby up and carried her to the crib.

4

: to brush or pull (hair) away from the face

—usually used as be swept up

Her hair was swept up in a bun.

Examples of sweep up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Maybe he got swept up in the Knicks mania? —Marlow Stern, Variety, 4 June 2026

And while it's designed to track enemy spies and terrorists, some lawmakers – including Republicans – say the communications of Americans can get swept up by the powerful surveillance tool, too. —Joey Garrison, USA Today, 2 June 2026

What is clear is that the idea got swept up by Sky & Telescope, when it gets used as a reference twice in the 1940s. —Doris Elin Urrutia, Space.com, 30 May 2026

Everyone else in Italy played man-to-man with a libero sweeping up behind the rest of the defence. —James Horncastle, New York Times, 27 May 2026

Rhymes for sweep up

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