clean bill of health

American  

noun

1. a certificate of health attesting the lack of a contagious disease, as on a ship.

2. an assurance, as by a doctor, that one is in good health.

3. Also clean bill an assurance, especially an official verdict by a committee, that a group or an individual has proved, under investigation, to be morally sound, fit for office, etc.

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clean bill of health Cultural  

1. To “get a clean bill of health” is to be told by some authoritative source, generally a doctor, that one is perfectly healthy. The phrase is sometimes used figuratively to indicate that a person or organization has been found free of any sort of irregularity: “After looking into her financial background, the Senate gave the nominee a clean bill of health.”

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clean bill of health Idioms  

1. A report confirming the absence of fault or guilt in a person or thing, as in Jeff checked every component and gave the computer a clean bill of health, or He had a foolproof alibi so the police had to give him a clean bill of health. This term comes from a 17th-century practice of requiring ships to produce a medical document (bill) attesting to the absence of infectious disease on board before landing.

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Etymology

Origin of clean bill of health

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

Unfortunately, if your network doesn’t get a clean bill of health, it’s a bigger challenge to find out what’s wrong.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Once veterinarians give the 11-pound male fox a clean bill of health, zookeepers said they would be looking for a long-term home for the animal, which is said to be doing well.

From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026

She steadily improved and within a year got a clean bill of health.

From Science Magazine • May 15, 2024

But EDF said it was given a relatively clean bill of health by the watchdog for the way it manages its direct debit calculations.

From BBC • Dec. 18, 2023

In consequence, lead was given a clean bill of health.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson