cleanly

American  

[klen-lee, kleen-lee] / ˈklɛn li, ˈklin li /

adjective

cleanlier, cleanliest

1. personally neat; careful to keep or make clean.

   The cat is by nature a cleanly animal.

2. habitually kept clean.

3. Obsolete. cleansing; making clean.

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adverb

1. in a clean manner.

cleanly British  

/ ˈklɛnlɪnɪs, ˈklɛnlɪlɪ /

adverb

1. in a fair manner

2. easily or smoothly

   the screw went into the wood cleanly

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adjective

1. habitually clean or neat

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• cleanlily
  adverb
• cleanliness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of cleanly

before 900; Middle English clenlich ( e ), Old English clǣnlīc, equivalent to clǣne clean + -līc -ly

Example Sentences

The wounds from a spell that brought one league title and Copa del Rey did not heal cleanly.

From BBC • May 13, 2026

“But we also have slowing growth, re-accelerating inflation, and a Fed that cannot move cleanly in either direction.”

From Barron's • May 4, 2026

Couple that with the group’s uncompromising punk rock attitude about their structure and message, and it’s easy to see why Irreversible Entanglements might not fit cleanly into everyone’s preconceived notions about “jazz.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 31, 2026

Index funds should enable investors to capture that return cleanly.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026

Instead, he drops, cleanly, six inches into the street.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides