clean out
Britishverb
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to remove (something) (from or away from)
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slang to leave (someone) with no money
gambling had cleaned him out
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informal to exhaust (stocks, goods, etc) completely
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See clean up , def. 1.
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Empty something of its contents, leave bare. For example, The crows cleaned out the whole field of corn , or At the shop's first sale the customers cleaned out the entire stock of shoes . [Mid-1800s]
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Deprive of money or other material resources. This usage originated in gambling, where it signified losing one's last stake. Charles Dickens had it in Oliver Twist (1838): “He has cleaned me out, but I can go and earn some more.” [Early 1800s]
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Drive out by force, as in The new CEO tried to get away with cleaning out all employees over the age of 60 . [Mid-1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The kind of ingredient you buy for one specific recipe and then keep rediscovering, whether through social media content or “I need to clean out the fridge” panic.
From Salon ● May 5, 2026
He added that Nato offered to help "clean out" the strait, adding that it would be free to use again "in not too long a distance".
From BBC ● Apr. 12, 2026
I wanted it so people who are recording can clean out their vocals and sinuses before they sing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 22, 2025
But they said the company was moving beyond its major challenges, such as its aggressive efforts to clean out or sell off unwanted shoes, which the analysts said were largely complete.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 18, 2025
Winifred fired off a pebble from her sling, knocking a ferret clean out of his perch into empty space.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
