clean (up) 1 of 2

verb

Definition of clean (up)next
1
as in to tidy (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 to censor
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 to eradicate
to destroy all traces of hurriedly cleaned up the mess that they had created in the kitchen

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

cleanup

2 of 2

noun

as in killing
an exceptionally large return The couple made a cleanup when they flipped the house.

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of clean (up)
Noun
Forecasters say lighter winds could slow the cleanup, but a stronger cold front moving through the Great Lakes early next week will bring a more widespread return of cleaner air. — Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 16 July 2026 In addition to the legal and financial fallout from the crash, the company also had to deal with the actual cleanup of the 114,000-ton cruise ship that remained stranded and half-sunk off the coast of Giglio Island. — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026 Dale Claypoole is a member of the Land Park Volunteer Corps and participates in cleanup days at the park, helping with gardens that are adjacent to Sutterville Road. — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 15 July 2026 However, additional investigation and cleanup of soil could be necessary if the property use is to change, according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. — Imani Cruzen, Twin Cities, 14 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for clean (up)
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clean (up)
  1. censor
  2. eradicate
  3. killing
  4. shorten
  5. erase
  6. profit
  7. edit
  8. abolish
Verb
  • In China, state media has covered the cases comprehensively, but wider discussion about the prosecutions on Chinese-language social media like Rednote has been partially censored.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 July 2026
  • Aguirre’s interviews are carefully edited with bleeps, censoring the ‘cabr—s’, the ‘hijos de p—s’ and ‘carambas’.
    — Colin Millar, New York Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of censor
Verb
  • The woes of airplane middle seats are soon to be eradicated for some United Airlines passengers.
    — Mason Leib, ABC News, 14 July 2026
  • But before the thylacine was fully eradicated, 13 pups of the marsupial species were preserved in alcohol.
    — Taylor Dotson, Scientific American, 10 July 2026
Definition of eradicate
Noun
  • Alleging that the killing occurred as Royal robbed Watkins, the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office successfully sought from a grand jury an indictment charging Royal with capital murder.
    — Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 July 2026
  • Concerns have primarily been driven by high-profile incidents, such as the fatal stabbing of Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte light rail train in 2025, or the killing of four law enforcement officers in an east Charlotte neighborhood in 2024.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 17 July 2026
Definition of killing
Verb
  • Soli said several heat safety measures are in place, including mandatory hydration breaks during games, additional hydration stations and medical staff on every field who will monitor conditions and shorten games by five to ten minutes a half.
    — Ubah Ali, CBS News, 14 July 2026
  • The companies believe that approach can shorten the time needed to field new capabilities for military customers.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 13 July 2026
Definition of shorten
Verb
  • Ungrounding, on the other hand, aims to remove a society from its place and erase all traces to its previous existence.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 July 2026
  • Photographs capture her outline in the mud of a creek bank; in the snow blown against a tree trunk; in an arrangement of branches and flowers leaned against a tree; and in the sand on a beach, already being erased by the waves.
    — Eliza Goodpasture, ARTnews.com, 15 July 2026
Definition of erase
Noun
  • In results published Monday, Europe’s largest airline said that profit in the three months to the end of June had tumbled 34% to €538 million from the same quarter in 2025.
    — Hanna Ziady, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
  • The carrier is flying about 6,500 flights per day this year — nearly an entire Alaska Airlines more worth of travel more than its closest competitor, according to Cirium — yet American’s profit gap has grown.
    — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 19 July 2026
Definition of profit
Verb
  • Trump later filed a lawsuit alleging the network deceptively edited the interview — an accusation CBS denied.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 17 July 2026
  • Ren also served as cinematographer, with editing by Shi, original music by Luna Pan, and sound post-production by Music and Effects.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 July 2026
Definition of edit
Verb
  • Lisa Walker-Yeager Lisa Walker-Yeager is running a campaign focused on abolishing or significantly reducing the property tax burden that residents, particularly senior citizens, have at a time when most goods and services are more expensive.
    — Sofi Zeman July 16, Kansas City Star, 16 July 2026
  • Polling found that support for abolishing ICE surged even among Republicans after the killing of the 37-year-old ICU nurse.
    — Michael Loria, USA Today, 15 July 2026
Definition of abolish

Browse Nearby Words

cleans up one's act
clean (up)
cleanup
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Cite this Entry

“Clean (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clean%20%28up%29. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

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