clear up


verb(adverb)
  1. (tr) to explain or solve (a mystery, misunderstanding, etc)

  2. to put (a place or thing that is disordered) in order

  1. (intr) (of the weather) to become brighter

nounclear-up (ˈklɪərˌʌp)
  1. the act or an instance of clearing up

Words Nearby clear up

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use clear up in a sentence

  • The watchword of conduct that will clear up all our difficulties is, the plain truth.

    The Salvaging Of Civilisation | H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
  • Dr. May looked at his son, and saw his face clear up, his brow expand, and his lips unclose with admiration.

    The Daisy Chain | Charlotte Yonge
  • He employed Corentin to clear up the dark side of the life of Clotilde's fiance.

    Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z | Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe
  • He added gravely that he believed it was going to clear up, though—unless the wind swung back into the storm quarter.

    Cabin Fever | B. M. Bower
  • The comte gave the latter money enough to clear up the miserable business, if such were possible.

    Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z | Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe

Other Idioms and Phrases with clear up

clear up

Clarify, explain, solve, as in Let's try to clear up this misunderstanding. [Late 1600s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.