Adjacent Words

Clean definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CLEAN, a. In a general sense, free from extraneous matter, or whatever is injurious or offensive; hence its signification depends on the nature and qualities of the substances to which it is applied.
1. Free from dirt, or other foul matter; as clean water; a clean cup; a clean floor.
2. Free from weeds or stones; as clean land; a clean garden or field.
3. Free from knots or branches; as clean timber. In America, clear is generally used.
4. Free from moral impurity; innocent.
Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Job 14. Acts 18.
5. Free from ceremonial defilement. Leviticus 10; Numbers 19.
6. Free from guilt; sanctified; holy. John 13. Psalms 51.
7. That might be eaten by the Hebrews. Genesis 7; Genesis 8.
8. That might be used. Luke 11.
9. Free from a foul disease; cured of leprosy. 2 Kings 5. Math. 8.
10. Dextrous; adroit; not bungling; free from awkwardness; as a clean feat; a clean boxer.
11. Free from infection; as a clean ship. A clean bill of health is a certificate that a ship is clean, or free from infection.
CLEAN, adv.
1. Quite; perfectly; wholly; entirely; fully; indicating separation or complete removal of every part. The people passed clean over Jordan. Josh 3. Is his mercy clean gone forever? Psalms 77. This use of clean is not now elegant, and not used except in vulgar language.
2. Without miscarriage; dextrously.
Pope came off clean with Homer.
CLEAN, v.t. To remove all foreign matter from; to separate from any thing whatever is extraneous to it, or whatever is foul, noxious, or offensive, as dirt or filth from the hands, body or clothes, foul matter from a vessel, weeds, shrubs and stones from a meadow; to purify. Thus, a house is cleaned by sweeping and washing; a field is cleaned by plowing and hoeing.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: free from dirt or impurities; or having clean habits; "children with clean shining faces"; "clean white shirts"; "clean dishes"; "a spotlessly clean house"; "cats are clean animals" [ant: dirty, soiled, unclean]
2: free of restrictions or qualifications; "a clean bill of health"; "a clear winner" [syn: clean, clear]
3: (of sound or color) free from anything that dulls or dims; "efforts to obtain a clean bass in orchestral recordings"; "clear laughter like a waterfall"; "clear reds and blues"; "a light lilting voice like a silver bell" [syn: clean, clear, light, unclouded]
4: free from impurities; "clean water"; "fresh air" [syn: clean, fresh]
5: (of a record) having no marks of discredit or offense; "a clean voting record"; "a clean driver's license"
6: ritually clean or pure [ant: impure, unclean]
7: not spreading pollution or contamination; especially radioactive contamination; "a clean fuel"; "cleaner and more efficient engines"; "the tactical bomb is reasonably clean" [syn: clean, uncontaminating] [ant: contaminating, dirty]
8: (of behavior or especially language) free from objectionable elements; fit for all observers; "good clean fun"; "a clean joke" [syn: clean, unobjectionable] [ant: dirty]
9: free from sepsis or infection; "a clean (or uninfected) wound" [syn: uninfected, clean]
10: morally pure; "led a clean life" [syn: clean, clean- living]
11: (of a manuscript) having few alterations or corrections; "fair copy"; "a clean manuscript" [syn: clean, fair]
12: (of a surface) not written or printed on; "blank pages"; "fill in the blank spaces"; "a clean page"; "wide white margins" [syn: blank, clean, white]
13: exhibiting or calling for sportsmanship or fair play; "a clean fight"; "a sporting solution of the disagreement"; "sportsmanlike conduct" [syn: clean, sporting, sporty, sportsmanlike]
14: without difficulties or problems; "a clean test flight"
15: thorough and without qualification; "a clean getaway"; "a clean sweep"; "a clean break"
16: not carrying concealed weapons
17: free from clumsiness; precisely or deftly executed; "he landed a clean left on his opponent's cheek"; "a clean throw"; "the neat exactness of the surgeon's knife" [syn: clean, neat]
18: free of drugs; "after a long dependency on heroin she has been clean for 4 years" n
1: a weightlift in which the barbell is lifted to shoulder height and then jerked overhead [syn: clean and jerk, clean] v
1: make clean by removing dirt, filth, or unwanted substances from; "Clean the stove!"; "The dentist cleaned my teeth" [syn: clean, make clean] [ant: begrime, bemire, colly, dirty, grime, soil]
2: remove unwanted substances from, such as feathers or pits; "Clean the turkey" [syn: clean, pick]
3: clean and tidy up the house; "She housecleans every week" [syn: houseclean, clean house, clean]
4: clean one's body or parts thereof, as by washing; "clean up before you see your grandparents"; "clean your fingernails before dinner" [syn: cleanse, clean]
5: be cleanable; "This stove cleans easily"
6: deprive wholly of money in a gambling game, robbery, etc.; "The other players cleaned him completely"
7: remove all contents or possession from, or empty completely; "The boys cleaned the sandwich platters"; "The trees were cleaned of apples by the storm" [syn: clean, strip]
8: remove while making clean; "Clean the spots off the rug"
9: remove unwanted substances from [syn: scavenge, clean]
10: remove shells or husks from; "clean grain before milling it" adv
1: completely; used as intensifiers; "clean forgot the appointment"; "I'm plumb (or plum) tuckered out" [syn: clean, plumb, plum]
2: in conformity with the rules or laws and without fraud or cheating; "they played fairly" [syn: fairly, fair, clean] [ant: below the belt, unfairly]

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English clene, from Old English cl?ne; akin to Old High German kleini delicate, dainty Date: before 12th century 1. a. free from dirt or pollution <changed to clean clothes> <clean solar energy> b. free from contamination or disease <a clean wound> c. free or relatively free from radioactivity <a clean atomic explosion> 2. a. unadulterated, pure <the clean thrill of one's first flight> b. of a precious stone having no interior flaws visible c. free from growth that hinders tillage <clean farmland> 3. a. free from moral corruption or sinister connections of any kind <a candidate with a clean record>; also free from violations <a clean driving record> b. free from offensive treatment of sexual subjects and from the use of obscenity <a clean joke> c. observing the rules ; fair <a clean fight> 4. ceremonially or spiritually pure <and all who are clean may eat flesh — Leviticus
7:19 (Revised Standard Version)> 5. a. thorough, complete <a clean break with the past> b. deftly executed ; skillful <clean ballet technique> c. hit beyond the reach of an opponent <a clean single to center> 6. a. relatively free from error or blemish ; clear; specifically legible <clean copy> b. unencumbered <clean bill of sale> 7. a. characterized by clarity and precision ; trim <a clean prose style> <architecture with clean almost austere lines> b. even, smooth <a clean edge> <a sharp blow causing a clean break> c. free from impedances to smooth flow (as of water or air) <a clean airplane> <a ship with a clean bottom> 8. a. empty <the ship returned with a clean hold> b. free from drug addiction <has been clean for six months> c. slang having no contraband (as weapons or drugs) in one's possession 9. habitually neat • cleanness noun II. adverb Date: before 12th century 1. a. so as to clean <a new broom sweeps clean> b. in a clean manner <play the game clean> 2. all the way ; completely <the bullet went clean through his arm> III. verb Date: 15th century transitive verb 1. a. to make clean: as (1) to rid of dirt, impurities, or extraneous matter (2) to rid of corruption <vowing to clean up city hall> b. remove, eradicate — usually used with up or off <clean up that mess> 2. a. strip, empty <a tree cleaned of fruit> b. to remove the entrails from <clean fish> c. to deprive of money or possessions — often used with out <they cleaned him out completely> intransitive verb to undergo or perform a process of cleaning <clean up before dinner> • cleanability noun • cleanable adjective IV. noun Date: circa 1889 an act of cleaning dirt especially from the surface of something

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj., adv., v., & n. --adj. 1 (often foll. by of) free from dirt or contaminating matter, unsoiled. 2 clear; unused or unpolluted; preserving what is regarded as the original state (clean air; clean page). 3 free from obscenity or indecency. 4 a attentive to personal hygiene and cleanliness. b (of children and animals) toilet-trained or house-trained. 5 complete, clear-cut, unobstructed, even. 6 a (of a ship, aircraft, or car) streamlined, smooth. b well-formed, slender and shapely (clean-limbed; the car has clean lines). 7 adroit, skilful (clean fielding). 8 (of a nuclear weapon) producing relatively little fallout. 9 a free from ceremonial defilement or from disease. b (of food) not prohibited. 10 a free from any record of a crime, offence, etc. (a clean driving-licence). b sl. free from suspicion; not carrying incriminating material. 11 (of a taste, smell, etc.) sharp, fresh, distinctive. 12 (of timber) free from knots. --adv. 1 completely, outright, simply (clean bowled; cut clean through; clean forgot). 2 in a clean manner. --v. 1 tr. (also foll. by of) & intr. make or become clean. 2 tr. eat all the food on (one's plate). 3 tr. Cookery remove the innards of (fish or fowl). 4 intr. make oneself clean. --n. the act or process of cleaning or being cleaned (give it a clean). Phrases and idioms: clean bill of health see BILL(1). clean break a quick and final separation. clean-cut sharply outlined. clean down clean by brushing or wiping. clean hands freedom from guilt. clean-living of upright character. clean out 1 clean thoroughly. 2 sl. empty or deprive (esp. of money). clean-shaven without beard, whiskers, moustache. clean sheet (or slate) freedom from commitments or imputations; the removal of these from one's record. clean up 1 a clear (a mess) away. b (also absol.) put (things) tidy. c make (oneself) clean. 2 restore order or morality to. 3 sl. a acquire as gain or profit. b make a gain or profit. clean-up n. an act of cleaning up. come clean colloq. own up; confess everything. make a clean breast of see BREAST. make a clean job of colloq. do thoroughly. make a clean sweep of see SWEEP. Derivatives: cleanable adj. cleanish adj. cleanness n. Etymology: OE clæne (adj. & adv.), clene (adv.), f. WG

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Clean Clean, adv. 1. Without limitation or remainder; quite; perfectly; wholly; entirely. ``Domestic broils clean overblown.'' --Shak. ``Clean contrary.'' --Milton. All the people were passed clean over Jordan. --Josh. iii. 17. 2. Without miscarriage; not bunglingly; dexterously. [Obs.] ``Pope came off clean with Homer.'' --Henley.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Clean Clean, a. [Compar. Cleaner; superl. Cleanest.] [OE. clene, AS. cl?ne; akin to OHG. chleini pure, neat, graceful, small, G. klein small, and perh. to W. glan clean, pure, bright; all perh. from a primitive, meaning bright, shining. Cf. Glair.] 1. Free from dirt or filth; as, clean clothes. 2. Free from that which is useless or injurious; without defects; as, clean land; clean timber. 3. Free from awkwardness; not bungling; adroit; dexterous; as, aclean trick; a clean leap over a fence. 4. Free from errors and vulgarisms; as, a clean style. 5. Free from restraint or neglect; complete; entire. When ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of corners of thy field. --Lev. xxiii. 22. 6. Free from moral defilement; sinless; pure. Create in me a clean heart, O God. --Ps. li. 10 That I am whole, and clean, and meet for Heaven --Tennyson. 7. (Script.) Free from ceremonial defilement. 8. Free from that which is corrupting to the morals; pure in tone; healthy. ``Lothair is clean.'' --F. Harrison. 9. Well-proportioned; shapely; as, clean limbs. A clean bill of health, a certificate from the proper authority that a ship is free from infection. Clean breach. See under Breach, n., 4. To make a clean breast. See under Breast.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Clean Clean, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cleaned; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleaning.] [See Clean, a., and cf. Cleanse.] To render clean; to free from whatever is foul, offensive, or extraneous; to purify; to cleanse. To clean out, to exhaust; to empty; to get away from (one) all his money. [Colloq.] --De Quincey.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(cleaner, cleanest, cleans, cleaning, cleaned) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. Something that is clean is free from dirt or unwanted marks. He wore his cleanest slacks, a clean shirt and a navy blazer... Disease has not been a problem because clean water is available... The metro is efficient and spotlessly clean... ? dirty ADJ 2. You say that people or animals are clean when they keep themselves or their surroundings clean. ? dirty ADJ 3. A clean fuel or chemical process does not create many harmful or polluting substances. Fans of electric cars say they are clean, quiet and economical. ? dirty ADJ • cleanly Manufacturers are working with new fuels to find one that burns more cleanly than petrol. ADV: ADV after v 4. If you clean something or clean dirt off it, you make it free from dirt and unwanted marks, for example by washing or wiping it. If something cleans easily, it is easy to clean. Her father cleaned his glasses with a paper napkin... It took half an hour to clean the orange powder off the bath... Wood flooring not only cleans easily, but it's environmentally friendly into the bargain. VERB: V n, V n prep/adv, V adv • Clean is also a noun. Give the cooker a good clean. N-SING 5. If you clean a room or house, you make the inside of it and the furniture in it free from dirt and dust. With them also lived Mary Burinda, who cooked and cleaned... She got up early and cleaned the flat. VERB: V, V n • cleaning I do the cleaning myself. 6. If you describe something such as a book, joke, or lifestyle as clean, you think that they are not sexually immoral or offensive. They're trying to show clean, wholesome, decent movies... Flirting is good clean fun... ? dirty ADJ [approval] 7. If someone has a clean reputation or record, they have never done anything illegal or wrong. Accusations of tax evasion have tarnished his clean image... You can hire these from most car hire firms, provided you have a clean driving licence. ADJ 8. A clean game or fight is carried out fairly, according to the rules. He called for a clean fight in the election and an end to 'negative campaigning'... = fair ? dirty ADJ: usu ADJ n • cleanly The game had been cleanly fought. ADV: ADV after v, ADV -ed 9. A clean sheet of paper has no writing or drawing on it. Take a clean sheet of paper and down the left-hand side make a list. = blank ADJ: usu ADJ n 10. If you make a clean break or start, you end a situation completely and start again in a different way. She wanted to make a clean break from her mother and father. ADJ: ADJ n 11. Clean is used to emphasize that something was done completely. (INFORMAL) It burned clean through the seat of my overalls... I clean forgot everything I had prepared. ADV: usu ADV prep/adv, also ADV before v [emphasis] 12. You can describe an action as clean to indicate that it is carried out simply and quickly without mistakes. They were more concerned about the dogs' welfare than a clean getaway... ? messy ADJ: usu ADJ n • cleanly I struck the ball cleanly and my shot was on target. ADV: ADV after v, ADV -ed 13. If you come clean about something that you have been keeping secret, you admit it or tell people about it. (INFORMAL) It would be better if you come clean about it and let her know what kind of man she is seeing. PHRASE: V inflects, oft PHR about/on n 14. to clean up your act: see act to keep your nose clean: see nose a clean slate: see slate to wipe the slate clean: see slate a clean sweep: see sweep clean as a whistle: see whistle

Easton's Bible Dictionary

The various forms of uncleanness according to the Mosaic law are enumerated in Lev. 11-15; Num. 19. The division of animals into clean and unclean was probably founded on the practice of sacrifice. It existed before the Flood (Gen. 7:2). The regulations regarding such animals are recorded in Lev. 11 and Deut. 14:1-21.

The Hebrews were prohibited from using as food certain animal substances, such as (1) blood; (2) the fat covering the intestines, termed the caul; (3) the fat on the intestines, called the mesentery; (4) the fat of the kidneys; and (5) the fat tail of certain sheep (Ex. 29:13, 22; Lev. 3:4-9; 9:19; 17:10; 19:26).

The chief design of these regulations seems to have been to establish a system of regimen which would distinguish the Jews from all other nations. Regarding the design and the abolition of these regulations the reader will find all the details in Lev. 20:24-26; Acts 10:9-16; 11:1-10; Heb. 9:9-14.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

klen (Anglo-Saxon cloene, "clear," "pure"): Rendering four Hebrew roots: bar, etc., "purify," "select," "make shining"; zakh, etc., "bright," "clean" "pure"; naqi, "free from," "exempt"; Taher, "clean," "pure," "empty," "bright" (?) the principal root, rendered "clean" 80 times (the King James Version); occurring in all its forms in various renderings about 200 times; also one Greek root, katharos, etc., akin to castus, "chaste," "free from admixture or adhesion of anything that soils, adulterates, corrupts" (Thayer's Lexicon). The physical, ritual, ethical, spiritual, figurative uses continually overlap, especially the last four.

1. Physical:

The physical use is infrequent: "Wash .... with snow water, and make my hands never so clean" (zakhakh, Job 9:30; figurative also); "clean provender" (hamits, the Revised Version (British and American) "savory"; the Revised Version, margin "salted"); "Cleanse .... inside of the cup and of the platter, that the outside thereof may become clean also" (katharos, Mt 23:26); "arrayed in fine linen, clean (katharon) and white" (Re 19:8; the American Standard Revised Version "bright and pure").

2. Ceremonial:

The principal use was the ceremonial; applied to persons, places or things, "undefiled," "not causing defilement," or "from which defilement has just been removed"; Taher, almost exclusively ceremonial, being the chief Hebrew root. Katharos (New Testament), or derivatives, has this use clearly in Mr 1:44; Lu 5:14: "Offer for thy cleansing the things which Moses," etc.; Heb 9:13,12,23: "the cleanness of the flesh," etc. "Clean" is applied to animals and birds: "of every clean beast" (Ge 7:2); "of all clean birds" (De 14:11); (for list of unclean creatures see Le 14-20); to places: "Carry forth .... unto a clean place" (Le 4:12); to buildings: "Make atonement for the house; and it shall be clean" (Le 14:53); to persons: "A clean person shall take hyssop" (Nu 19:18); to clothing: "garment .... washed the second time, and shall be clean" (Le 13:58); and to objects of all sorts, free or freed from defilement.

3. Ethical or Spiritual:

The ethical or spiritual meaning, either directly or figuratively, is found in the Old Testament chiefly in Job, Psalms, the Prophets, whose interest is ethico-religious, rather than ritual, but the predominant uses are found in the New Testament: "Cleanse yourselves (barar) ye that bear the vessels of Yahweh" (Isa 52:11); "How can he be clean (zakhah) that is born of a woman?" (Job 25:4) (principally moral, perhaps with allusion to the ceremonial defilement of childbirth); "The fear of Yahweh is clean" (Ps 19:9), that is, the religion of Yahweh is morally undefiled, in contrast to heathen religions; "He that hath clean (naqi) hands, and a pure heart" (Ps 24:4); "Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean" (Taher, Ps 51:7); "Therefore said he, Ye are not all clean" (katharos, Joh 13:11). Here, as in Ps 51:7 and many others, the ritual furnishes a figure for the spiritual, illustrating the Divine purpose in the ritual, to impress, prefigure and prepare for the spiritual. A somewhat similar figurative moral use is found in Ac 18:6: "Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean" (katharos, "guiltless," "unstained").

See also UNCLEANNESS; PURIFICATION; DEFILEMENT.

Clean.--Adverb (in one case adjective): "utterly," "wholly"; usually rendering an intensive use of the Hebrew verb as Joe 1:7: "He hath made it clean bare" (lit. "stripping he will strip"); Zec 11:17: "Arm .... clean dried up"; Isa 24:19 the King James Version :"Earth is clean dissolved." Twice it renders a principal verb: Jos 3:17: "Passed clean over the Jordan" (literally, "finished with regard to J."); Le 23:22 King James Version: "Shall not make a clean riddance" (literally, "shall not finish the corners"; the American Standard Revised Version "shalt not wholly reap"). Once it renders a noun: Ps 77:8: "Is his lovingkindness clean gone for ever?" ("end," he-'aphec, "has his lovingkindness come to an end?"); and once an adverb "clean (ontos, "actually," "really") escaped" (2Pe 2:18); but the American Standard Revised Version, following the reading "oligos," "a little," "scarcely," renders "just escaping."

Philip Wendell Crannell

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. a. 1. Unstained, unspotted, spotless, unsoiled, unsullied, immaculate, cleanly, neat. 2. Unadulterated, unmixed, pure, purified, clarified. 3. Neat, delicate, shapely, graceful, light, dexterous, adroit, free from bungling. 4. Entire, complete, perfect, whole, free from defect, faultless, unblemished, unimpaired, without abatement, unabated. 5. Pure, innocent, free from moral impurity, undefiled in heart. 6. Pure, chaste, clean-minded, free from lust. 7. Ceremonially pure, ritually just, according, with ceremonial. II. ad. Entirely, completely, perfectly, altogether, wholly, thoroughly, fully, in all respects, in every respect, out and out. III. v. a. Cleanse, purify, make clean, free from dirt.

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue

Expert; clever. Amongst the knuckling coves he is reckoned very clean; he is considered very expert as a pickpocket.

Moby Thesaurus

Christian, Daedalian, absolute, absolutely, acknowledge, adept, admit, adroit, all-embracing, all-encompassing, all-out, all-pervading, altogether, antiseptic, apt, artistic, authoritative, bath, bathe, blameless, bleach, bleached, blotless, born, bowdlerize, bravura, bright, brighten, brilliant, broad-based, chaste, clarify, clean, clean out, clean up, clean-cut, cleanly, cleanse, cleansed, clear, clear out, clever, come clean, comely, completely, comprehensive, confess, congenital, consummate, coordinated, crack, crackerjack, creditable, cunning, cute, daedal, dainty, decent, decontaminate, decontaminated, deep-dyed, definite, deft, delouse, deplete, depurate, deterge, dexterous, dextrous, diplomatic, dirt-free, disinfect, disinfected, do, do up, downright, dry-clean, dust, dust off, dyed-in-the-wool, egregious, empty, entirely, erect, estimable, ethical, evacuate, even, excellent, exhaust, exhaustive, expert, expurgate, fair, fancy, fastidious, faultless, fresh, freshen, full of integrity, fully, furbish, good, goodish, graceful, guiltless, gut, handy, high-minded, high-principled, highly respectable, honest, honorable, immaculate, immaculately, impeccable, inculpable, ingenious, innocent, inoffensive, intensive, inviolate, irreproachable, irretrievably, irrevocably, just, kosher, launder, lave, law-abiding, law-loving, law-revering, lustrate, magisterial, manly, masterful, masterly, modest, mop, moral, neat, neaten, no mean, noble, nonpolluted, of cleanly habits, omnibus, omnipresent, order, out-and-out, outright, own up, perfect, perfectly, pervasive, plain, plumb, police, polish, politic, principled, professional, proficient, pure, pure in heart, purehearted, purely, purge, purified, purify, quick, quite, quite some, radical, ready, recondition, reform, regular, renew, renovate, reputable, resourceful, respectable, reveal, right, right-minded, righteous, ritually pure, sanitary, sanitize, scavenge, scour, scrub, scrubbed, sexually innocent, shapely, sheer, shining, shiny, simple, sing, skillful, slick, smooth, smut-free, smutless, snowy, some, sparkling, spill the beans, sponge, sportsmanlike, sportsmanly, spotless, spotlessly, spruce, stainless, stark, statesmanlike, steam-clean, sterile, sterling, straight, straighten out, straighten up, stylish, sweep, sweep out, sweeping, sweet, sweeten, tactful, tahar, taintless, the compleat, the complete, thorough, thoroughgoing, thoroughly, through-and-through, tidy, total, totally, trim, true-dealing, true-devoted, true-disposing, true-souled, true-spirited, truehearted, tubbed, ubiquitous, unadulterated, unarmed, unbesmirched, unblemished, unblotted, unclutter, uncomplicated, unconditional, uncontaminated, uncorrupt, uncorrupted, undefiled, unimpeachable, uninfected, universal, unmitigated, unmixed, unmuddied, unpolluted, unqualified, unrelievedly, unreserved, unrestricted, unsmirched, unsmudged, unsoiled, unspoiled, unspotted, unstained, unsullied, untainted, untarnished, upright, uprighteous, upstanding, utter, utterly, vacuum, veritable, virtuoso, virtuous, wash, wash up, weaponless, well-done, well-favored, well-formed, well-made, well-proportioned, well-scrubbed, well-shaped, well-washed, white, whiten, whitened, wholesale, wholesome, wholly, wipe, wipe off, wipe out, wipe up, workmanlike, worthy, yeomanly