Synonyms

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

self-cleaning adjective

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.

“A lot of the stragglers have done a good job cleaning up their act,” says Ed Al-Hussainy, global rates strategist at Columbia Threadneedle Investments.

From Barron's • Apr. 20, 2026

The findings suggest several ways to limit the environmental impact of these popular cleaning tools.

From Science Daily • Apr. 18, 2026

"This government is committed restoring nature and cleaning up our rivers," she said.

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

Nazarian said the property owner will be billed for clearing and cleaning the lot.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2026

Our shore duties also included cooking and cleaning for the master, and the boys fought over these jobs for the sake of his leftovers, which were far tastier than ours.

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