sweep up

phrasal 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

Though designed to target immigrants who had committed violent crimes or pose a national security threat, today the agreements are used to sweep up anyone not in the country legally, said Lena Graber, managing attorney at the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. —Rick Jervis, USA Today, 22 Nov. 2025

While admitted cheaters were offered a pathway back into the seven-year program, some students say they were swept up in the scandal and wrongly accused in a flawed investigation. —Mahsa Saeidi, CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025

Senior manager and principal level roles were also swept up in the cuts, the filings show. —Annie Palmer, CNBC, 21 Nov. 2025

The police noted that his daughter had been swept up in waves between 15 and 20 feet high. —Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for sweep up

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