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

1. remove from sight