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

Relevance

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.

Related Words

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
Filed in state court in Albany, the lawsuit seeks to force the companies to fund environmental cleanup efforts in New York and to warn consumers about their products. — ABC News, 9 July 2026 Though this occurred over a sparsely populated wilderness, the incident sparked a major cleanup operation by Canada and the United States, along with a significant diplomatic flap and the payment of millions of dollars by the Soviets for damages. — David Szondy july 07, New Atlas, 8 July 2026 Nothing matters more right now than completing demolition and cleanup as quickly and safely as possible to protect the health and safety of Boyle Heights and East LA. — City News Service, Daily News, 8 July 2026 The Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency will search for new funding sources for environmental cleanup at a River District property slated for affordable senior housing, after the organization was passed over for a federal grant. — Sacbee.com, 8 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
  • However, a professional pest control company may be needed to eradicate them for good.
    — Alora Bopray, USA Today, 8 July 2026
  • There is also a ton of room here for AI and automation to better support credentialing teams in repetitive tasks and eradicate redundancy.
    — John Bou, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
Definition of eradicate
Noun
  • Los Angeles County prosecutors charged Jason Melara, Taylor and Johnson not only with his murder, but also the killing of Mario Melara under the theory that his death was provoked by the armed robbery of Aguilar.
    — Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026
  • Graphic videos of the shooting flooded social media and politicians on both sides of the aisle condemned the killing – one example of the political violence roiling America in recent years.
    — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 11 July 2026
Definition of killing
Verb
  • Preventive care reduces avoidable emergency department visits and shortens hospital stays, allowing health systems to focus resources on patients who need the most complex care.
    — Russell Cox, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
  • Sconset, which is actually shortened from its full name Siasconset, is the neighborhood on the east side of Nantucket.
    — Maya Kachroo-Levine, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2026
Definition of shorten
Verb
  • With the latest rally, the stock has erased its losses for the year and is now up more than 2%.
    — CJ Haddad, CNBC, 10 July 2026
  • But Barberena and Brody said the move this week by authorities went a step further, noting that those erased from the system were not just dissenters.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 July 2026
Definition of erase
Noun
  • The International Air Transport Association last month warned that global airlines could see their profits halved this year due to rising jet fuel costs, which are expected to be about 70% higher year-on-year.
    — Hugh Leask, CNBC, 6 July 2026
  • Oil prices, which skyrocketed for the first few months of the US-Israeli war with Iran, are now coming back down, closing a window of opportunity for Russia to use higher profits on its exports to close its widening budget deficit.
    — Clare Sebastian, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
Definition of profit
Verb
  • The creation of this content included the use of AI based on templates created, reviewed and edited by journalists in the newsroom.
    — CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 11 July 2026
  • The creation of this content included the use of AI based on templates created, reviewed and edited by journalists in the newsroom.
    — NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 10 July 2026
Definition of edit
Verb
  • As a candidate, Hong has not backed away from her calls to defund and abolish the police.
    — Scott Bauer, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026
  • In 2014, Pope Francis abolished the future use of the monsignor title — which denotes a specific honor — for most priests.
    — Vivian Wilson, Twin Cities, 8 July 2026
Definition of abolish

Browse Nearby Words

cleans up one's act
clean (up)
cleanup
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Clean (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clean%20%28up%29. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All