spring-clean

[ spring-kleen ]

/ ˈsprɪŋˈklin /

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verb (used with object)

to subject (a place) to a spring-cleaning.

QUIZZES

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”

Are you aware how often people swap around “their,” “there,” and “they’re”? Prove you have more than a fair grasp over these commonly confused words.

Question 1 of 7

Which one of these commonly confused words can act as an adverb or a pronoun?

their

there

they're

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of spring-clean

First recorded in 1890–95

Words nearby spring-clean

spring break, springbuck, spring cankerworm, spring catch, spring chicken, spring-clean, spring-cleaning, spring conjunctivitis, Springdale, springe, spring ephemeral

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for spring-clean

She completed a yoga teacher-training program and, in the spring of 2008, went on a retreat in Peru to study with shamans.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
With Charlie Hebdo, “you really have a clean case here,” Shearer said.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This is the Mexico that U.S. college students would be wise to steer clear of on spring break.
Why Mexicans Are Enraged by Obama’s Big Tuesday Meeting|Ruben Navarrette Jr.|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It is the only tourist center Ukraine has left on the Black Sea, since Russia annexed Crimea last spring.
Is Putin Turning to Terrorism in Ukraine?|Anna Nemtsova|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST

This is a guy who has his son-in-law clean his eyeglasses, for crying out loud.
Will Chris Christie Regret His Cowboy Hug?|Matt Lewis|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It was a spring day, and the fat buds of the chestnuts were bursting into magnificent green plumes.
Children's Ways|James Sully
He shall give his mind to finish the glazing, and his watching to make clean the furnace.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
I do not know what I think; all my thoughts seem whirling round as leaves do in brooks in the time of the spring rains.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
In the spring of 1868 he was taken by his mother for a visit to England, and there, in the same year, his sister was born.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II|Rudyard Kipling
The cat had been about to spring at Grandfather Mole again when Mr. Crow spoke to her.
The Tale of Grandfather Mole|Arthur Scott Bailey

British Dictionary definitions for spring-clean

spring-clean

verb

to clean (a house) thoroughly: traditionally at the end of the winter

noun

an instance of spring-cleaning

Derived forms of spring-clean

spring-cleaning, noun

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

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spring-clean

verb (used with object)

QUIZZES

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”

Origin of spring-clean

Words nearby spring-clean

Example sentences from the Web for spring-clean

British Dictionary definitions for spring-clean

verb

noun

Derived forms of spring-clean