clear

Formsclearer, clearest

Formsclears, clearing, cleared

1. 1
   easy to understandadjective

   Easy to understand, leaving no room for confusion or doubt.

   The report's conclusions were clear and needed no further explanation.

   He wanted a clear answer, not a vague promise.

   UsageCommon patterns: it is clear that, make it clear that, and be clear about something you understand.

   Similarplain, obvious, explicit, unambiguous, straightforward

   Oppositevague, ambiguous, confusing, obscure

2. 2
   adjective

   Transparent rather than cloudy or opaque, allowing light to pass through and objects behind to be seen, as with clean water, glass, or a thin broth.

   The diver admired the clear water of the tropical reef.

   The bottle was made of clear plastic with no tint at all.

   UsageSet phrases: crystal clear and as clear as crystal.

   Similartransparent

   Oppositecloudy, opaque, murky, muddy

   Note

   The core image is light passing through. In clear glass or clear plastic it usually suggests colorless too, but the word itself asks only that things show through: a bottle can be clear green, and clear water may carry a faint tint.

3. 3
   verbtransitive

   To remove things that block or fill a place so that it is open or empty, as in 'clear the road of snow' or 'clear the table'.

   Crews work overnight to clear the highway of snow.

   A plumber came to clear the blocked drain under the kitchen sink.

   UsageYou clear the table or clear a road of snow, or you clear things off a place.

   Similarempty

   Oppositeblock, obstruct, clog, fill

   Note

   Robert W. Chambers' The Younger Set (1907) uses the naval phrase cleared for action, comparing a trim matron to a converted yacht. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • Robert W. Chambers wrote The Younger Set. gutenberg.org
   • The Younger Set was first published in 1907. gutenberg.org
   • The book contains the phrase 'cleared for action'. gutenberg.org
4. 4
   verbtransitive

   To remove doubt or ambiguity from a matter, so that it is clarified or resolved.

   A short statement from the manager should clear any confusion about the new rules.

   The committee met to clear the remaining doubts surrounding the proposal.

   UsageIn everyday talk clear up is more usual: clear up the confusion, clear up a misunderstanding.

   Similardispel, resolve, settle, clarify

5. 5
   no cloudsadjective

   Free of clouds, leaving the sky open and bright.

   Forecasters promised clear skies for the whole weekend.

   The night was clear, and the moon lit the entire valley.

   UsageOften in clear skies, a clear day or a clear night.

   Similarcloudless, fine, fair, bright

   Oppositecloudy, overcast

   Note

   In everyday speech it simply means cloudless. Forecasters, however, also use a more precise meteorological measure, under which a sky with less than an eighth of it covered still counts as clear. Emerson Hough's The Purchase Price (1910) catches the everyday feel in "the clear light of the bright autumn morning."

6. 6
   adjective

   Distinct and readily seen or heard, with details coming through plainly.

   The new lens produced a remarkably clear image.

   There was a clear difference between the two samples under the microscope.

   UsageOften in a clear image, a clear view or a clear voice.

   Oppositeblurred, indistinct, fuzzy, faint

7. 7
   not blockedadjective

   Open and free of anything that would block movement or passage.

   With the runway finally clear, the plane was allowed to take off.

   Keep the emergency exits clear at all times.

   UsageOften keep an exit or path clear. The coast is clear means it is safe to act without being seen or caught.

   Similaropen, free, unobstructed, unblocked, empty

   Oppositeblocked, obstructed

   Note

   Here the emptiness is of anything in the way: a road, a runway, an intersection a driver wrongly judged safe to cross. Joseph C. Lincoln's Mr. Pratt's Patients (1913) uses it for open ground, a path opening into "a big clear space like a lawn." Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • Joseph C. Lincoln wrote Mr. Pratt's Patients. home.hiwaay.net
   • Mr. Pratt's Patients was first published in 1913. en.wikisource.org
   • The book describes a path opening into 'a big clear space like a lawn', using 'clear' for open ground. home.hiwaay.net
8. 8
   adverb

   Away from or apart from something, so as not to touch it or be held back by it, as in 'stand clear of the doors' or 'she broke clear of the pack'.

   The crew pulled the boat clear of the rocks before the tide rose.

   Keep clear of the wet paint until it dries.

   UsageUsually followed by of: stand clear of the doors, keep clear of the paint.

   Similarfree, away

9. 9
   verbtransitive

   To give or get official approval or permission for someone or something, as in 'security cleared the visitors' or 'clear the plan with your manager'.

   Security cleared the visitors after checking their badges.

   The committee will clear the new drug for limited trials.

   UsageClear someone to do something or for something (cleared for takeoff); you clear a plan with your boss.

   Similarapprove, authorize, pass, sanction, permit

   Oppositereject, refuse, deny, ban

10. 10
    prove innocentverbtransitive

    To free someone from suspicion or blame, especially for a crime.

    The witness's testimony was enough to clear the suspect.

    DNA results finally cleared the prisoner after twenty years.

    UsageUsually clear someone of something: cleared of all charges; also clear your name.

    Similarexonerate, acquit, absolve, vindicate

    Oppositeconvict, incriminate, implicate

    Note

    Two prepositions can introduce the charge: a court clears a man of murder, and John Dryden asks his reader to clear him from partiality. Addison's Cato stretches the verb further: "Wouldst thou clear rebellion?" There the object is the deed itself, and clearing it means excusing or justifying it rather than proving someone innocent. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

    • John Dryden appeals to his reader to clear him from partiality. chaucer.fas.harvard.edu
    • Joseph Addison wrote Cato. gutenberg.org
    • The quoted question occurs in Cato; Sempronius speaks it. constitution.org
    • In this passage, rebellion itself is the object of clear, with the sense of excusing or justifying it. constitution.org
11. 11
    resetverbtransitive

    To reset or unset something, returning it to an empty state or to zero.

    Clear the cache if the page keeps loading the old version.

    The program cleared every counter at startup.

    UsageCommon with computers: clear the cache, clear the screen, clear your history.

    Similarreset, empty, flush, wipe, zero

    Oppositeset

    Note

    Programmers treat it as the partner of set. To clear a bit is to make it zero, while to set it is to make it one. The same verb empties larger structures too, such as an array or a register, removing their contents or resetting them to a blank default. The structure itself stays in place. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

    • Clearing and setting a bit are opposite operations: clearing makes it zero; setting makes it one. marz.utk.edu
    • Clearing an array can reset its elements to their default values while retaining the elements and array size. Default values are still values, not an absence of contents. learn.microsoft.com
    • A register can be cleared. microchip.com
    • Some clear operations remove all elements, as with Java's ArrayList.clear(); others reset stored values. The structure itself can remain in place in either case. docs.oracle.com
12. 12
    verbintransitive

    To become free from obstruction or cloudiness; to grow transparent.

    By noon the fog had begun to clear.

    Her vision cleared once the medication took effect.

    UsageOften of weather and fog: the fog cleared; clear up is common too: the sky cleared up.

    Similarlift, disperse, dissipate

    Oppositecloud

13. 13
    verbtransitive

    To get past or over something without touching it, or to go beyond a height or mark, as in jumping.

    The jet cleared the mountain ridge with little room to spare.

    The horse managed to clear the tall fence cleanly.

    UsageOften barely or just clear something: the truck barely cleared the bridge.

    Similarjump, vault, hurdle

14. 14
    adjective

    Having no flaws or marks, such as freckles on the skin or knots in wood.

    After months of treatment, her complexion was finally clear.

    The cabinetmaker paid extra for clear walnut without a single knot.

    UsageOften clear skin or a clear complexion.

    Similarunblemished, flawless

    Oppositeblemished, spotty

    Note

    Skin and timber share this sense, and in both it means unmarked rather than see-through. Clear walnut is still dark, opaque wood. It simply has no knots, which keeps this sense apart from the "transparent" meaning. On skin it also forms the compound clear-skinned, hyphenated before a noun, as in Janis Ian's "At Seventeen" (1975), which sets it before a word for smiling faces.

15. 15
    adjective

    Able to perceive things directly and keenly, seeing beneath the surface and telling fine differences apart.

    She brought a clear intellect to the talks and spotted the flaw in their offer at once.

    Even at ninety, the judge had the clearest mind in the courtroom.

    UsageOften a clear mind or a clear head.

    Similarsharp, keen, acute, incisive, lucid

    Oppositemuddled, confused, dull

    Note

    Here the clarity belongs to the one who sees rather than to what is seen: a clear intellect, a clear head. In Milton's Paradise Lost (1667) the power felt "within me cleere" is one that can discern things in their causes. Keep it apart from the "easily understood" meaning: a clear mind perceives well, while a clear argument is easy to perceive. A clear head can also simply mean a calm, unmuddled one.

16. 16
    adjective

    Of a person, fully understanding something and having no doubt or confusion about it.

    Before we sign anything, I want to be clear about who pays for the repairs.

    I'm still not entirely clear on how the new booking system works.

    Similarsure, certain

    Oppositeunsure, uncertain, confused

    Note

    Here the clarity sits in the person, not in the matter. It follows a verb rather than a noun (I'm not clear, we need to be clear) and usually takes about or on: clear about who pays, clear on how it works. Compare the "easily understood" meaning: it isn't clear describes the facts, while I'm not clear admits the speaker's own confusion, often as a polite way to ask for an explanation.

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