tidy

adjective

ti·dy | \ ˈtī-dē

tidier; tidiest

Definition of tidy

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : neat and orderly in appearance or habits : well ordered and cared for

b : methodical, precise a tidy mind

2 : large, substantial a tidy profit

3 : adequately satisfactory : acceptable, fair a tidy solution to their problem

4 : properly filled out : plump

tidy

verb

tidied; tidying

Definition of tidy (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

: to put in order tidy up a room

intransitive verb

: to make things tidy tidying up after supper

tidy

noun

plural tidies

Definition of tidy (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : a usually compartmentalized receptacle for various small objects

2 : a piece of fancywork used to protect the back, arms, or headrest of a chair or sofa from wear or soil

Other Words from tidy Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about tidy

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Other Words from tidy

Adjective

tidily \ ˈtī-də-lē

\ adverb

tidiness \ ˈtī-dē-nəs

\ noun

Verb

tidier noun

Examples of tidy in a Sentence

Adjective

He has always been a tidy person. She earns a tidy salary. They paid a tidy sum for the house.

Verb

I tidied the house before they arrived.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Keeping our house tidy taught me to be organized and self-disciplined. — Marc Myers, WSJ, "When Richard Carpenter Reminisces About Singing With His Sister, It’s Yesterday Once More," 23 Jan. 2019 David’s landlady has woken up to the fact that the carriage house would fetch a tidy sum if sold. — Sarah Dunn, New York Times, "Two Novels on the Complexities of Revisiting Past Loves," 1 June 2018 Invite friends over for dinner and to show off your super clean, tidy, and organized home. — Wendy Manwarren Generes, Country Living, "How to Make Your New Year's Resolutions Stick in 2016," 21 Dec. 2015 The Robinson family lived in the upstairs apartment of a tidy, two-story brick bungalow that was owned by a relative who taught piano and directed a church choir. — Peggy Noonan, WSJ, "Melania’s Misstep and Michelle’s Mystery," 15 Nov. 2018 The variation included Flightless, a tidy and simple citrus-forward pale ale; The Juice Is Loose, a fruity double IPA that’s among Transient’s most popular beers; and an earthy IPA fermented in oak. — Josh Noel, chicagotribune.com, "Transient Artisan Ales the star in southwest Michigan's best little beer town," 26 Apr. 2018 After the couple tied the knot officially, Bieber began to take a seriously adult approach to his hair, keeping his buzz cut trim and tidy. — Jenna Rennert, Vogue, "Tracking Justin Bieber’s Hair Evolution, From Teen Pop Star to Married Man," 7 Feb. 2019 But grief doesn’t usually follow a quick and tidy timeline, Wolfelt explains, adding that the unexpected, traumatic nature of losing someone to suicide can make the process even more complex. — Carolyn L. Todd, SELF, "7 Things to Say When a Friend’s Loved One Dies by Suicide (and 3 to Avoid)," 5 Feb. 2019 Marie Kondo recently headed to Jimmy Kimmel Live to help the the host tidy up his office space. — Maya Mcdowell, House Beautiful, "Marie Kondo Squashed a Misconception About the KonMari Method for Jimmy Kimmel," 30 Jan. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

While attending Tokyo Women's Christian University to study sociology, her friends started to pay her to tidy up their rooms. — Amanda Garrity, Good Housekeeping, "Marie Kondo's Massive Net Worth Proves That It Pays to Keep a Tidy House," 16 Jan. 2019 By contrast, this latest bit of research hammers the gas, forcing it, like a sulky teenager, to tidy away its qubits. — Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Rough-and-ready quantum memory may link disparate quantum systems," 9 Nov. 2018 The October 2018 Update tried to tidy up this situation. — Peter Bright, Ars Technica, "Windows 10 October 2018 Update no longer deletes your data," 10 Oct. 2018 The robots will be tidying the aisles by January 31, 2019. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Walmart Buys Over 300 Aisle-Cleaning Robots," 6 Dec. 2018 So what would the best-selling author and tidying guru debut next? — Bridget Hallinan, Condé Nast Traveler, "Marie Kondo's Revolutionary New Product Is...a Shoebox," 24 July 2018 Years later, that same urge to tidy led to her bestselling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing, which teaches readers to throw away items that don't bring them joy. — Kate Storey, Good Housekeeping, "Marie Kondo Reveals a Nervous Breakdown Led to Her Joy Method," 5 Jan. 2016 The 2017 Vikings tidied their path to a division title by knocking out the star quarterback of the rival Green Bay Packers, Aaron Rodgers, and then defeated the New Orleans Saints in their postseason opener on a 61-yard touchdown as time expired. — Ben Shpigel, New York Times, "The Eagles Crushed Vikings Fans’ Hopes. Now They’re Crashing Their Super Bowl Party.," 30 Jan. 2018 The physical therapists and occupational therapists and nurses and that woman Bianca who tidied up, telling him about her son, the high school basketball player. — Mike Jensen, Philly.com, "Former Temple big man Ron Rollerson, having lost a leg, finds a new sport," 24 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The appeal of my WeWork space is fairly obvious: Someone else maintains the free coffee, waters the plants, and tidies up the sun dappled work spaces. — Aaron Pressman, Fortune, "Data Sheet—Why WeWork Has to Pay Up for Rapid Growth," 25 Apr. 2018 The most popular affordable robot vacuum A good robot vacuum can help you keep your home tidy between deep cleanings, and the Eufy RoboVac 11+ is the #1 best-selling robot vacuum on Amazon right now. — Samantha Gordon, USA TODAY, "These are the 5 best Amazon deals for the first day of spring," 20 Mar. 2018 The truth escapes them that within a month, their designer efforts will be covered in old pizza boxes and dirty clothes exactly like the other rooms -- until mom shows up a day early for homecoming and tidies things up a bit. — Beth Thames, AL.com, "Oprah for president? She's served her country already," 10 Jan. 2018 YOUR PROPERTY TIDY Have the lawn mowed, the plants watered and the pool cleaned. — Ronda Kaysen, New York Times, "How to Protect Your House When You’re on Vacation," 14 July 2017 Buy Photo Erica Tunnell’s tidy row home in the Overbrook section of the city was swarmed Saturday by environmental activists, students and public health experts. — Chris Mondics, Philly.com, "Activists, community groups test for lead," 24 June 2017

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