An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'clear up' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context
Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them.
In this post, I am turning my attention to the phrasal verb 'clear up'. I will explain four different meanings that it has, from tidying a room to improved weather, and I will give you lots of example sentences to enable you to learn how it is used by native speakers and in which contexts. So, without further ado, let's get started!
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CLEAR UP: KEY INFORMATION
Usage | Common |
Number of meanings | 4 |
Past tense forms | Cleared up / Cleared up |
Separable? | Yes |
MEANINGS (Click to jump to each one)
THE BASICS
Before we delve into the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'clear up', let's first take a moment to consider the individual words 'clear' and 'up' and what they mean on their own.
Firstly, we have the verb 'to clear', which is a regular verb, whose main meaning is to remove obstacles, obstructions and unwanted things from a space or area. In addition, it can also be used as a verb to mean to authorise something, to pass over something without touching or hitting it and to prove that a suspect of a crime is not guilty, with some other less common meanings.
The forester is clearing a path through the trees.
I had to clear my drive this morning as it was covered with snow.
My boss has cleared my request for holiday next week.
The dog could clear the garden fence with ease.
The suspected murdered was cleared of all charges and released.
Next, we have the prepositional particle 'up', which can be used in phrasal verb constructions to give a number of different nuances and meanings. Unsurprisingly, one of it's primary uses is to denote a movement in an upwards direction or an increase, however it can also add the ideas of improvement (cheer up), collection (gather up) and separation (break up).
So, now that we have covered the basics, let's start looking at the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'clear up'....
MEANING 1: To provide an explanation for something
CEFR Language Level | B2 - Upper intermediate |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To explain, to clarify, to solve, to resolve, to straighten out, to sort out |
Separable? | Yes |
Our first meaning of the phrasal verb 'clear up' is one that you may have come across before, especially if you use English for your job and is 'to provide an explanation for something'.
Nouns commonly used with this application:
|
In order to comprehend this first application, we need to think about what 'clear' can mean as an adjective, which is in this case is 'easy to understand'. If we then convert this adjectival meaning to a verb, we get the idea of making something clear or ensuring that something becomes easy for people to understand. Looking at the list of nouns above, you will note that many of them are used for things where information is missing or required and the action of giving this information is known as 'clearing something up'. This is oftentimes in the form of an explanation.
Furthermore, sometimes when there is confusion about a situation, especially in a work environment, it can lead to problems and we can also use this application of 'clear up' to mean to solve a problem and make it go away.
The English teacher stayed after class to clear up any doubts the students had about the phrasal verbs that they had covered in the class.
Please can you clear up this billing issue? I think you have charged me twice for the same item.
Debbie worked quickly to clear up her customer's misunderstanding about the refund policy.
I’ll call the client to clear up any confusion about the project deadlines.
The mystery of my missing cat has finally been cleared up - he was locked in our garden shed!
MEANING 2: To tidy somewhere
CEFR Language Level | B2 - Upper intermediate |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | Mainly British English |
Potential synonyms | To tidy, to tidy up, to clean up |
Separable? | Yes |
Like a lot of people, I really enjoy hosting parties and social gatherings at my house where I can catch up with my friends and family, forget about work and relax a bit. The one thing that I dislike about it however is the next day when the place is a complete mess and everywhere needs cleaning and tidying. The reason that I am mentioning this is because our second meaning of 'clear up' is to tidy somewhere.
Nouns commonly used with this application: Mess House / Apartment Room |
Firstly, you should note that this usage is primarily a British one and may sound a little strange to American English speakers, who may be more accustomed to 'clean up' as an alternative. However you should note that 'clean up' may also involve an aspect of cleaning , which 'clear up' does not tend to do.
In a nutshell, this application of 'clear up' is used to describe the action of moving items from a place and either putting them in their designated places or throwing them away into the trash, in order to make the space or room look neat and today. Typically, this usage is heard in relation to a messy room or a place with lots of litter and rubbish, particularly following a social event or party.
John, can you help me clear up the kitchen after dinner?
Helen spent the morning clearing up her desk so she could focus on her work.
The kids were told to clear up their toys before bedtime.
It took Simon and I hours to clear up the mess after the party.
Steve offered to clear up the garden after the storm left branches and debris everywhere.
After finishing the project, Mike and Abigail stayed late to clear up the conference room.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 'CLEAR' AND 'CLEAR UP'?
Lastly, before concluding this section, it is worth mentioning that when used in this context, 'clear' and 'clear up' have slightly different meanings.
Whilst the expression 'to clear up a room' conveys the idea of clearing up the mess in a room in order to make it look tidy, the expression 'to clear a room' conveys the idea of removing all of the items in it, in order to make it empty. A small difference but it can make a big difference in certain situations, so it is definitely worth knowing it!
MEANING 3: To become cured
Photo: Pexels
CEFR Language Level | B2 - Upper intermediate |
Usage | Medium |
Where it it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To heal, to go away |
Separable? | Sometimes |
In the previous section, we explored the concept of getting rid of unwanted items from a room or space to improve its appearance. For this third meaning, we are also looking at the idea of eliminating something but in this case, it is illnesses as this meaning is 'to become cured of a disease'.
Nouns commonly used with this application: Illness / Disease Cold Cough Infection Rash / Spots / Hives Symptoms |
Despite even our best efforts to stay well, we all get sick from time to time and whilst it is often an unpleasant experience, the symptoms do eventually go away and we start to feel better again, or in other words the illness clears up.
Although we can use 'clear up' to talk about any infection or disease being cured, it is most commonly used in reference to skin conditions such as rashes, hives and spots. I think that this is particularly so as when the rash finally disappears, the skin once again looks is clear.
From a grammatical perspective, we can use this application of 'clear up' in both a transitive way (with a direct object) and an intransitive way (without a direct object).
We use it transitively particularly when we want to specify a drug or treatment that will cure the issue or help to make it go away....
The doctor prescribed an ointment that should clear up the rash in a few days.
This treatment is designed to clear up acne within a couple of weeks.
The cream helped to clear the redness from her sunburn up.
I'd had a persistent cough for weeks and then I took this herbal remedy and it cleared it up in a day!
On the other hand, we use it intransitively when we want to say that a condition improves independently without any drugs, when we do not want to specify the drug or medication that cleared the condition up or when it has already been mentioned and so does not need to be repeated. Remember, that when used this way, we cannot separate 'clean' and 'up'.
My cold finally started to clear up after a week of rest and medication.
If your symptoms don’t clear up by tomorrow, you should see a doctor.
Laura's hay fever usually clears up once the pollen season ends.
Kevin's psoriasis was finally starting to clear up when a stressful incident at work made it flare up again.
MEANING 4: To improve (weather)
CEFR Language Level | B2 - Upper intermediate |
Usage | Medium |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To improve, to brighten up, to let up |
Separable? | No |
We've now reached our fourth and final meaning of 'clear up', which is a nice and positive one to end the post with as it means 'to improve' and is used specifically when talking about the weather.
Nouns that this application is commonly used with: Weather Rain Fog Storm Snow |
As you can tell from the list above, this particular usage is used in reference to types of weather that people consider bad. In other words, types of weather that disrupt our plans and prevent us from doing things that we want to do, especially when they are outside.
Moreover, typical weather scenarios in which this is used are when the sun comes out and the day becomes brighter, when it stops raining, when fog or mist lifts and visibility resumes and when a period of windy or stormy weather comes to an end. As you might guess, this is one that we say a lot in the UK, often just as a wish!
The weather is supposed to clear up this afternoon, so we should be able to go for a walk then.
It's been raining heavily all morning, but it looks like it’s starting to clear up now.
If the weather doesn’t clear up soon, we’ll have to cancel the village show.
Pete and his fishermen friends waited for the storm to clear up before heading out on the boat.
It was cloudy when we arrived, but the weather began to clear up just in time for the picnic.
The sun finally came out after the rain cleared up, making for a beautiful evening.
We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts.
Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'clear up'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!!
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THE END
Clear up your bedroom if you want your pocket money this week!