Make a clean sweep
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
To clear or win it all, total take.
Origin
From 19th-century Britain, tied to brooms; 'clean sweep' for all, slang by 1820s in a tale for win. A 1840s 'Times' uses it for a vote haul.
Variants
- Clean sweep
Usage Examples
- She made a clean sweep; won every prize.
- Make a clean sweep; clear it out!
- Clean sweep; took it all.
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