as in tidy
being clean and in good order
a distinguished-looking gentleman with a kempt beard and an old-world manner
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Recent Examples of kempt
The creeping ivy of rap had crawled over their white picket fences, across their kempt green lawns, and around their Victorian homes, weakening the old walls between cultures.
—
Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 5 June 2023
The whole place is well kempt.
—Amanda Walker, al, 15 Aug. 2020
There was a whiff of mystery, a sense that something more was going on behind those well-kempt exteriors.
—Aaron Gilbreath, Longreads, 9 Feb. 2018
Silence your internal neat freak A well-kempt garden is the toad’s worst enemy.
—Molly Marquand, Good Housekeeping, 16 May 2017
A well-kempt courtyard for visitors conceals the prison’s overcrowding—stuffed to nine times its capacity with up to 250 women sharing a cell.
—National Geographic, 19 Oct. 2016
Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 5 June 2023
The whole place is well kempt.
—Amanda Walker, al, 15 Aug. 2020
There was a whiff of mystery, a sense that something more was going on behind those well-kempt exteriors.
—Aaron Gilbreath, Longreads, 9 Feb. 2018
Silence your internal neat freak A well-kempt garden is the toad’s worst enemy.
—Molly Marquand, Good Housekeeping, 16 May 2017
A well-kempt courtyard for visitors conceals the prison’s overcrowding—stuffed to nine times its capacity with up to 250 women sharing a cell.
—National Geographic, 19 Oct. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kempt
Adjective
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Southerners know the importance of keeping a clean and tidy house.—
Melissa Locker,
Southern Living,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Financial details remain undisclosed, but international presales moved briskly at film markets over the past year, suggesting Yeon and his collaborators have likely already made a tidy return.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The lack of any real surprises or subversions along the way can be a drag, making the Prime Video miniseries feel a bit padded even at a relatively trim six hour-long episodes.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
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The standard trim, layer, and fine-tune features are all here, plus elements like automatic captions, text, 4K HDR, and more.—
James Peckham,
PC Magazine,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Some of Chelsea’s other successful corner routines haven’t been quite as neat, with a series of half-clearances and scuffed contacts forcing scraps in the six-yard box before other teammates could apply the finishing touch.—
Thom Harris,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
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Charles Marquis Warren’s direction pinpoints the action with neat perfection.—
Hal Landers,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kempt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kempt. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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