cleaning

American

[klee-ning] / ˈkli nɪŋ /

noun

an act or instance of making clean.

Give the house a good cleaning.
Slang. an overwhelming or complete defeat, financial loss, or failure.

Our team took a cleaning in yesterday's game.
Informal. killing.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

self-cleaning

adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

cleanings

plural

Etymology

Origin of cleaning

First recorded in 1655–75; clean + -ing ¹

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.

See Examples For:

cleaning cleanings

In the case of public toilets, such a justification "does not appear to exist" since the cost of building, maintaining and cleaning cubicles and urinals is basically the same, the professor said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

But scientists say they provide one of nature's most important cleaning services.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

I remember your cleaning dilemma all too well.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

Reading through my childhood letters this summer while cleaning out my files, I came upon a birthday card that the four of us older siblings had written, apparently to Grandfather.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026

Mama now took care of everything—grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, washing our clothes, paying bills and tuition.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

While the researchers say it won’t replace traditional dental cleaning, it could be used along with such cleanings to keep gum-disease inflammation at bay.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

In addition to toothpaste, researchers and the PerioTrap team have developed a gel used after professional dental cleanings to block harmful bacteria, support a healthy microbiome, and maintain gum health.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 13, 2026

I would always task myself with being as still as possible during my cleanings.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2025

"In between cleanings is when our alligators still manage to get them before they are removed."

From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2024

Instead of counting on a clean reaction, I'll do frequent "hydrogen cleanings" with a small flame.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023