CLEANING (UP) Synonyms: 139 Similar and Opposite Words

cleaning (up)

verb

present participle of clean (up)

as in tidying (up)

to make a place neat and orderly by removing extraneous stuff you're expected to clean up after you use the workroom

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as in censoring

to remove objectionable parts from cleaned up the rock star's interview before publishing it in the newspaper

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as in eradicating

to destroy all traces of hurriedly cleaned up the mess that they had created in the kitchen

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for cleaning (up)

Verb

Its relatively basic grippers and limited lifting capacity are enough for tasks such as picking up shoes, clothes, and toys, wiping tables, fetching objects, and watering plants.

— Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2026
The Yankees may be down a few sluggers entering the postseason, however, they certainly are equipped with a player capable of picking up some of the slack.

— James O'Connell, New York Daily News, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of picking up

Verb

Equal-time rule doesn’t apply, group says The equal-time rule prohibits broadcast stations from censoring or rejecting political ads paid for and sponsored by legally qualified candidates.

— ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 29 Sep. 2026
Earlier in the week, Kraft allegedly led a pressure campaign to force the Seattle rapper off Ed Sheeran’s The Loop Tour, igniting a firestorm of backlash from artists and fans accusing Kraft of censoring Macklemore’s free speech.

— Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of censoring

Verb

Community meetings focus on eradicating the homeless and protecting property values rather than supporting neighbors or providing shelter.

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2026
Back then, researchers were focused on eradicating the New World screwworm, a nasty pest that lays its eggs in wounds on living creatures.

— Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of eradicating

Verb

Some of them have had to ration fuel, while others enacted emergency measures like shortening the work or school week to reduce fuel use.

— Greg Pollock, The Conversation, 28 Sep. 2026
Some changes appear cosmetic, such as shortening the news conference that occurs after meetings of the Fed’s rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee and changing the seating arrangements for reporters to be alphabetical by news organization.

— Steve Liesman,Matt Peterson, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of shortening

Verb

Some Italian Americans assert that Columbus Day is at its core a celebration of our heritage, and that changing the name would be akin to erasing our history.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Sep. 2026
Treating those experiences as interchangeable risks erasing the sacrifice behind one of them.

— Angelette C. Aviles, Baltimore Sun, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of erasing

Verb

Shares slumped 16% for a third straight session of losses, wiping out $400 billion in market cap on Monday alone.

— Gail Krishnan, CNBC, 23 June 2026
The prospect of even a mini-Dust Bowl is alarming as the original disaster during the Great Depression sent dust clouds across rural America, wiping out entire communities and triggering mass migration to other parts of the country.

— Jason Ma, Fortune, 21 June 2026

Definition of wiping out

Verb

The vice president also blasted Nixon, who is in an uphill race to defeat Moody, for supporting defunding the police and abolishing prisons.

— Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 1 Oct. 2026
Coleman later joins forces with HopesAndDrums for a house mix that calls for abolishing ICE.

— Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of abolishing

Verb

For a few minutes at each end of that window, the moon’s edge will appear to align with that of the sun, blotting out the star’s fierce light and revealing the wispy corona off to one side.

— Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 6 Apr. 2026
From up in the space shuttle, in 1983, astronaut Sally Ride could see the pollution blotting out her Los Angeles hometown.

— Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026

Definition of blotting out

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Style

“Cleaning (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cleaning%20%28up%29. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of cleaning (up)

verb

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