wipe the slate clean
idiom
: to forget all the things that have happened or been done and start doing something again : to start again from the very beginning
She wishes she could wipe the slate clean and start over in a different career.
Examples of wipe the slate clean in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Saturn and Neptune will be conjoining in Aries on February 20, which might wipe the slate clean where financial entanglements, clients, and other sources of support are involved.
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Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Jan. 2026
Known as liquidation bankruptcy, Chapter 7 allows borrowers to wipe the slate clean in terms of unsecured debts, which can provide a fresh start for those drowning in credit card bills and medical expenses — but the path to relief comes with strict rules that can catch filers off guard.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 20 Jan. 2026
Now mind you, this doesn’t wipe the slate clean for me on that.
—Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
Their question: Had Michaels decided that now was the time to wipe the slate clean?
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 1 Oct. 2025
Trump announced his plans to wipe the slate clean for the former TV stars just a day before.
—Evan Mealins, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
As new technologies, new rising powers, and long-standing tensions combine to form fresh chaos, the Trump administration has decided to wipe the slate clean.
—Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
With the average refund at $3,300 and the average U.S. household carrying about $8,000 in credit card debt, though, most of us won’t be able to wipe the slate clean entirely.
—Dan Avery, CNBC, 19 Mar. 2025
The pardons will also wipe the slate clean for violent offenders who went after the police on Jan. 6 with baseball bats, two-by-fours and bear spray and are serving prison terms, in some cases of more than a decade.
—Alan Feuer, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2025
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Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Jan. 2026
Known as liquidation bankruptcy, Chapter 7 allows borrowers to wipe the slate clean in terms of unsecured debts, which can provide a fresh start for those drowning in credit card bills and medical expenses — but the path to relief comes with strict rules that can catch filers off guard.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 20 Jan. 2026
Now mind you, this doesn’t wipe the slate clean for me on that.
—Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
Their question: Had Michaels decided that now was the time to wipe the slate clean?
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 1 Oct. 2025
Trump announced his plans to wipe the slate clean for the former TV stars just a day before.
—Evan Mealins, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
As new technologies, new rising powers, and long-standing tensions combine to form fresh chaos, the Trump administration has decided to wipe the slate clean.
—Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
With the average refund at $3,300 and the average U.S. household carrying about $8,000 in credit card debt, though, most of us won’t be able to wipe the slate clean entirely.
—Dan Avery, CNBC, 19 Mar. 2025
The pardons will also wipe the slate clean for violent offenders who went after the police on Jan. 6 with baseball bats, two-by-fours and bear spray and are serving prison terms, in some cases of more than a decade.
—Alan Feuer, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wipe the slate clean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wipe%20the%20slate%20clean. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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