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
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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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in eradicating
to destroy all traces of
hurriedly cleaned up the mess that they had created in the kitchen
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cleaning (up)
Verb
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By monitoring and censoring the titles that libraries can carry, book bans ultimately serve to discredit these institutions’ authority and justify defunding them.—
Alex Wermer-Colan,
The Conversation,
1 Oct. 2025 -
The film was finished in 2019, but the Bolsonaro government withheld funding for its distribution, effectively censoring the movie.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In July, after FilmLA’s contract was renewed for five more years despite opposition from some local public advocates, a host of measures aimed at streamlining and eradicating bureaucratic hurdles in the film permitting process was approved.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
1 Oct. 2025
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Childhood vaccinations are widely considered effective and safe—eradicating illnesses that once claimed kids’ lives, such as mumps and polio.—
Sherri Gordon,
Parents,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The company’s ethos is centered on significantly shortening the drug discovery and development process, ultimately creating medicines to treat the most significant killers, starting with aggressive cancers like breast cancer, prostate cancer, and lymphoma.—
Alexa Mikhail,
Flow Space,
29 Sep. 2025
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For adult projects, Alloy works with the writer to develop a full manuscript, and Morgenstein finds this step a way of shortening the process.—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Failing to seize the narrative, the authorities shifted course and began erasing the record from public memory.—
Yangyang Cheng,
NPR,
4 Oct. 2025
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These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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An army of around 200 volunteers from the church and several charities were making food, picking up trash, guiding guests and MC'ing dance showcases, said Mary Cantrell, who has been a key organizer since 1993.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
5 Oct. 2025
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Central had two players that had 20 or more carries with Martin picking up 129 yards on 22 carries and Taylor with 75 yards on 23 totes.—
Darren Lauber,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Outdoor Voices, once the toast of the category, faded into restructuring, wiping out its entire social media presence.—
Alexander Puutio,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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At least 61,000 people living in the Gaza Strip have died in Israel’s subsequent military campaign aimed at wiping out Hamas and recovering the hostages.—
Nancy Tartaglione,
Deadline,
27 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The European Parliament has twice called for Yahaya’s release, asking Nigeria to set an example by abolishing the blasphemy laws under which he has been detained for over five years.—
Sean Nelson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
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Both Biss and Abughazaleh support abolishing ICE, and the winner of their primary will be heavily favored to hold a seat whose voters backed Kamala Harris by 37 points last year.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Unfortunately, the 2025 Perseids happened to coincide with the appearance of a waxing gibbous moon, which bleached the sky with moonlight, blotting out all but the brightest members of the ancient meteor shower.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
13 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Cleaning (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cleaning%20%28up%29. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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