Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

clean

2 verb
     
NEW! See related topics: COOKING
clean2 S1 W3
1 [intransitive and transitive] to remove dirt from something by rubbing or washing [↪ cleanse]:
Your shoes need cleaning.
clean something down/off
We clean the machines down at the end of each day.
clean something off/from something
He used a tissue to clean his fingerprints off the gun.
➔ dry-clean

; ➔ spring-clean

at spring-cleaning
2 [intransitive and transitive] to clean a building or other people's houses as your job:
Anne comes in to clean twice a week.
3

clean your teeth

British English to make your teeth clean using a toothbrush and toothpaste [= brush your teeth American English]
4 [transitive]DFC to remove the inside parts of an animal or bird before cooking it:
Harry caught the fish and cleaned them himself.
5

clean your plate

to eat all your food
WORD FOCUS: clean WORD FOCUS: clean
wash with soap and water
wipe with a damp cloth
brush with a brush to remove the dirt
polish by rubbing with a cloth
scrub by rubbing hard
sweep with a broom
mop with water and a mop (a tool with a long handle)
vacuum also hoover British English with a machine that sucks up dust
disinfect using chemicals to kill germs
cleanse to clean your skin using a special cream
rinse to put water on to remove dirt or soap
dust to remove dust, for example with a cloth

clean somebody/something out

phrasal verb
1

clean something ↔ out

to make the inside of a room, house etc clean or tidy:
We'd better clean out the attic this week.
2

clean somebody out

informal if something expensive cleans you out, you spend so much money on it that you now have very little left:
Our trip to Paris cleaned me out.
3

clean somebody/something out

informal to steal everything from a place, or all of someone's possessions

clean up

phrasal verb
1 to make a place completely clean and tidy:
We spent all Saturday morning cleaning up.
clean something ↔ up
plans to clean up the beaches
clean up after
John always expects other people to clean up after him (=to make a place clean after he has used it).
2 to wash yourself after you have got very dirty
clean yourself up
Let me just go clean myself up.
Dad's upstairs getting cleaned up.
3

clean up your act

informal to start behaving sensibly and responsibly:
Some companies could face heavy fines if they fail to clean up their act.
4 informal to win a lot of money or make a lot of money in a business deal:
He cleaned up at the races yesterday.
5

clean something ↔ up

to improve moral standards in a place or organization:
It's high time British soccer cleaned up its image.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
 
Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

ADVERTISING AND MARKETINGANIMALSBANKING
BIOLOGYBUSINESS BASICSCOMPUTERS
CLOTHESDAILY LIFEEDUCATION
FINANCEFOODGRAMMAR
HAIR AND BEAUTYHUMANLAW
MUSICNATURESPORT
STOCKS AND SHARESTECHNOLOGYTRADE