Definition

Verb: 1. To empty a space completely by removing all contents: To make a container, room, or area empty or tidy by taking everything out or throwing things away. 2. To leave a place quickly and completely: To depart from a place, often suddenly or for good. 3. (Informal) To cause someone to leave a place, often by force or persuasion: To make someone go away from a location.

Usage and Examples

• Emptying a space:
  • I need to clear out the garage this weekend; it's full of old boxes.
  • She cleared out her closet and donated all the clothes she no longer wears.
• Leaving a place:
  • The police told the crowd to clear out immediately.
  • He packed his bags and cleared out of the apartment without saying goodbye.
• Causing someone to leave:
  • The new security policy cleared out all the unauthorized visitors from the building.

Advanced Usage

• "to clear someone/something out of (a place)": Emphasizes the action of removing specific items or people from a specific location.
  • We must clear all the old furniture out of the storage room.

Variants and Related Words

• Clear-out (noun, chiefly British): The act or process of removing unwanted items from a place.
  • We had a massive clear-out before moving house.

Synonyms

• Empty (verb): To remove the contents of something.
• Evacuate (verb): To leave a place, especially for safety reasons.
• Vacate (verb): To leave a place, making it available for others.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Clear away: To remove items, especially from a table or surface, after finishing with them.
  • Can you help me clear away the dishes?
• Clear up:
  • To make a place tidy.

    • Please clear up your room.
  • (Of weather) To become sunny.

    • The sky cleared up in the afternoon.
  • To solve a problem or mystery.

    • The detective cleared up the confusion.

Related Idioms

• Clear the decks: To prepare for an important activity by finishing other tasks or removing obstacles.
  • Let's clear the decks so we can focus on the new project.

Verb

1. empty completely
   • We cleaned out all the drawers
2. clear out the chest and lungs
   • This drug expectorates quickly
3. move out and leave nothing behind