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Synonyms

clean out

British  

verb

  1. to remove (something) (from or away from)

  2. slang to leave (someone) with no money

    gambling had cleaned him out

  3. informal to exhaust (stocks, goods, etc) completely

"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
clean out Idioms  

  1. See clean up , def. 1.

  2. 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]

  3. 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]

  4. 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.

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

But he also indicates "we want to go in and clean out everything."

From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026

To decrease the cost of moving, clean out as much stuff as possible beforehand.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 23, 2026

Uber is responsible for making sure the robot cars are maintained—somebody has to clean out the back seat and pick up the forgotten backpacks.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 8, 2025

I caught some, but when I handed them to the monkeys the fish jumped and wriggled clean out of their hands.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo

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.