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

But as the music builds in intensity, the blues and bebop references in Lyons’ playing get swept up in a wave of interlocking patterns. — Levi Dayan, Pitchfork, 3 Nov. 2026

He later got swept up in the sword-and-sandal sordidness of Caligula (1979). — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2026

On a 2022 trip to Manaslu, in Nepal, the cameras were there, recording the moment when Nelson, two turns into her run, got swept up in an avalanche and went over a mountainside. — Nick Paumgarten, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026

Through the years, the singer has remained remarkably loyal to her lengths, whether swept up into a gravity-defying pony, styled into a sleek ballerina bun, or cascading down her back. — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2026

Rhymes for sweep up

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