Phrasal verbs · Free lesson
Clean up: deal with the mess
The cups are back in the cupboard, but there is still juice on the table. Putting the cups away did not clean up the spill. You still have a different job to do.
Professor Scott MendozaMeaning in this lesson
clean up
Remove dirt or mess and leave a person or place clean and tidy.
Example
“We cleaned up the kitchen after lunch.”
We dealt with the mess left in the kitchen after lunch.
The short answer
Clean up means remove dirt or mess so something is clean and tidy. Say clean up the mess or clean the mess up. With it, use clean it up: the pronoun goes between clean and up.
Focus on the mess that needs removing.
Clean up can include wiping, washing or tidying after an activity. The object can name the mess or the place: clean up the spill; clean up the kitchen. Up is part of the expression here, not a direction. For a finished past action, use cleaned up.
The objects tell you what the job is.
I put away the cups.
I cleaned up the spilled juice.
These actions can be part of the same cleanup, but putting away the cups does not tell us whether the juice was removed.
From a mess to a clear sentence
Name the mess
Please clean up the spilled juice.
Try the other noun position
Please clean the spilled juice up.
Use a pronoun for the same mess
Please clean it up.
Try it now
Choose the sentence that fits.
Read all answers and explanations
The cups are stored, but juice is still on the table. Which request specifically asks someone to deal with the juice?
Please clean up the spilled juice.Clean up the spilled juice names the remaining mess. Putting away the cups is already finished; setting them up would prepare or arrange them.
Replace the mess with it: “Please clean up the mess.”
Please clean it up.With the pronoun it, the order is clean + it + up. A full noun can go after up, but it cannot in this pattern.
Choose the sentence that reports a finished cleanup yesterday.
We cleaned up the kitchen yesterday.Cleaned is the regular past form. Clean does not express this finished past action, and tomorrow points to a different time.
Build it yourself
Explain what you did about the spill.
You removed the spilled juice. Use it for the juice and begin with I.
Arrange all four pieces. Select a piece again to move it back.
Your sentence
0 of 4 piecesYour chosen pieces will appear here.
See a model answer
I cleaned it up.
I cleaned it up reports a finished action. It refers to the spilled juice and belongs between the verb and up.
A little more clarity
Common questions
A few useful details before you move on.
Can I say “Let’s clean up” without naming the mess?
Yes, when the situation makes the task clear. After a messy lunch, everyone can understand what needs attention.
Lunch is over. Let’s clean up.
Is it clean up or cleanup?
Use two words for the verb: we clean up. Cleanup is a noun, especially in American English; clean-up is another noun spelling. Keep the verb as two words.
We cleaned up after the party.
Take it into your day
Use clean up for dealing with a mess. Use clean it up when it replaces that mess.
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