1
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in censoring
to remove objectionable parts from
cleaned up the rock star's interview before publishing it in the newspaper
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in eradicating
to destroy all traces of
hurriedly cleaned up the mess that they had created in the kitchen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cleaning (up)
Verb
-
Residents began self-censoring in private chats and deleting posts out of fear of reprisal.—
Mostafa Salem,
CNN Money,
16 Apr. 2026 -
Meta executives emphasized at trial that the company continuously improves safety and addresses compulsive social media use without infringing on free speech or censoring users.—
Morgan Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The new state consumer services agency will focus on eradicating junk fees, increasing online privacy protections and overseeing oil companies, according to Newsom’s office.—
Lia Russell,
Sacbee.com,
12 May 2026
-
But roots can be deep and seeds can spread easily, making eradicating invasive plants difficult.—
Stephen Underwood,
Hartford Courant,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
Walmart is converting empty stores into delivery hubs, further shortening the last mile between the retailer and the consumer.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
15 May 2026
-
Harsh scrubbing can wear away the protective sealants that keep water and bacteria out, damaging grout lines and shortening their lifespan.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Miami Herald,
12 May 2026
Verb
-
It was delivered with a celebratory tone for the first-year mayor in erasing a massive funding gap.—
Amethyst Martinez,
USA Today,
14 May 2026
-
Then, in 2022, with those practices firmly in place, the city's reading scores began to skyrocket, erasing pandemic-era losses and rising back around 2017 levels.—
Cory Turner,
NPR,
13 May 2026
Verb
-
Residents, businesses and organizations are also invited to participate in the department’s 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline awareness campaign by picking up a 988 yard sign at the county office at 2170 Point Blvd.—
Mike Danahey,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2026
-
Hukporti barely had time to settle in before picking up three fouls in just under four minutes.—
C.J. Holmes,
New York Daily News,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
The conquest of Canaan is cited to show that God approves of wiping out whole nations.—
Kenneth Seeskin,
Chicago Tribune,
11 May 2026
-
The nearly 50% surge could push the share of fuel costs to total operating expenses from just under a quarter to nearly a third, wiping out any expected profit margin.—
Aldo Svaldi,
Denver Post,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
Let’s go down memory lane and recall that the 13th Amendment is abolishing slavery and involuntary servitude.—
Ann Marie Luft,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 May 2026
-
The Deep is just going through it in this episode, starting with the news that Homelander is abolishing the Seven.—
Ben Rosenstock,
Vulture,
13 May 2026
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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Cleaning (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cleaning%20%28up%29. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
