clear off
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Verb: 1. To leave or go away, especially quickly or abruptly: Used as an imperative to tell someone to depart immediately. 2. To remove items from a surface, making it tidy or empty: To clear things away from a specific area.
Usage Examples
- Verb (To leave):
- The shopkeeper told the loitering teenagers to clear off.
- When the security guard arrived, the trespassers cleared off immediately.
- Verb (To remove items):
- Please clear off the dining table so we can set it for dinner.
- He cleared off his desk at the end of every workday.
Advanced Usage
- The phrase is often used as a direct, informal, and sometimes rude command to tell someone to leave.
- "This is private property. Clear off!"
- It can imply a sense of urgency or the need to vacate a space promptly.
Variants and Related Words
- Clear away (phrasal verb): Often used synonymously with the "remove items" meaning.
- We need to clear away these dishes.
- Clear out (phrasal verb): Can mean to leave a place quickly or to remove all contents from a space.
- They had to clear out of the building during the fire drill.
- I need to clear out the garage.
Synonyms
- Leave: To go away from a place.
- Depart: To leave, especially to start a journey.
- Go away: A common imperative telling someone to leave.
- Scram: (Informal) To leave quickly.
- Tidy up: To make a space neat by putting things away.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Clear up: To make a place tidy by removing mess or clutter; also, for weather to become sunny.
- Can you clear up the living room?
- The sky cleared up in the afternoon.
- Clear out: See 'Variants and Related Words' above.
Related Idioms
- Make oneself scarce: To leave, especially to avoid trouble or an unwanted situation.
- When the argument started, he decided to make himself scarce.
Verb
- remove from sight