clear
clear
/klɪə(r)/
easy to understand
1 easy to understand and not confusing
She gave me clear and precise directions.
Are these instructions clear enough?
Your meaning needs to be clear.
You'll do as you're told—is that clear?
clear about something She was quite clear about her reasons for leaving.
This behaviour must stop—do I make myself clear (= express myself clearly so there is no doubt about what I mean)?
I hope I made it clear to him that he was no longer welcome here.
Collocations
verbs
beseembecome…
adverb
extremelyfairlyvery…
preposition
to
phrases
clear and concise
without doubt
2 obvious and leaving no doubt at all
This is a clear case of fraud.
She won the election by a clear majority.
His height gives him a clear advantage.
a clear warning of the risks
He left no clear indication of his wishes.
We must send a clear message to young people that cyberbullying will not be tolerated.
There is clear evidence that he was involved with the gang.
They made their intentions abundantly clear.
it is clear to somebody (that)… It was quite clear to me that she was lying.
It is clear from the graph that sales have dropped sharply.
clear what, how, whether, etc… It is not clear what they want us to do.
How he got there was not clear.
Collocations Dictionary
verbs
beseembecome…
adverb
extremelyfairlyvery…
preposition
to
phrases
clear and concise
3 not confused; having no doubt
clear about something Are you clear about the arrangements for tomorrow?
clear on something My memory is not clear on that point.
clear what, how, whether, etc… I'm still not clear what the job involves.
We need a clear understanding of the problems involved.
Collocations Dictionary
verbs
be
adverb
extremelyfairlyvery…
preposition
abouton
mind
4 thinking in a sensible and logical way, especially in a difficult situation
a clear thinker
You'll need to keep a clear head for your interview.
easy to see/hear
5 easy to see or hear
The photo wasn't very clear.
The voice on the phone was clear and strong.
She was in Australia but I could hear her voice as clear as a bell.
The image was crisp and clear.
The colours in her paintings are very clear and bright.
Collocations Dictionary
verbs
belookbecome…
adverb
extremelyfairlyvery…
phrases
loud and clear
easy to see through
6 that you can see through; transparent
The water was so clear we could see the bottom of the lake.
clear glass
a clear colourless liquid
a sheet of clear cellophane
Collocations Dictionary
verbs
bebecome
adverb
extremelyfairlyvery…
See full entry
sky/weather
7 without cloud or mist
a clear blue sky
On a clear day you can see France.
skin
8 without spots or marks
clear skin
a clear complexion
eyes
9 bright and lively
Her clear blue eyes sparkled.
not blocked
10 clear (of something) free from things that are blocking the way or covering the surface of something
The road was clear and I ran over.
All exits must be kept clear of baggage.
You won't get a clear view of the stage from here.
I always leave a clear desk at the end of the day.
Most roads are now clear of snow.
conscience
11 if you have a clear conscience or your conscience is clear, you do not feel guilty
free from something bad
12 clear of something free from something that is unpleasant
They were still not clear of all suspicion.
We are finally clear of debt.
not touching/near
13 not before noun clear (of somebody/something) not touching something; a distance away from something The plane climbed until it was clear of the clouds.
Make sure you park your car clear of the entrance.
period of time
Allow three clear days for the letter to arrive.
You must give seven clear days’ notice of the meeting.
sum of money
They had made a clear profit of £2 000.
phonetics
16 (of a speech sound) produced with the central part of the tongue close to the top of the mouth. In many accents of (= ways of pronouncing) English, clear /l/ is used before a vowel, as in leave.
Idioms
be clear/smooth sailing
(North American English)
(British English be plain sailing)
to be simple and free from trouble
(as) clear as day
easy to see or understand
(as) clear as mud
(informal, humorous) not clear at all; not easy to understand
Oh well, that's all as clear as mud, then.
clear blue water (between A and B)
a complete difference or division between two people or groups
Voters want to see clear blue water between the main parties.
They failed to put clear blue water between themselves and their competitors.
the coast is clear
(informal) there is no danger of being seen or caught
As soon as the coast was clear, he climbed in through the window.
keep your head | keep a clear/cool head
to remain calm in a difficult situation
She needed to keep a clear head if she was to remain in control.
leave the field clear for somebody
to enable somebody to be successful in a particular area of activity because other people or groups have given up competing with them
The complete disarray of the opposition parties leaves the field clear for the government to implement urgent reforms.
TOPICS SuccessC2
loud and clear
in a way that is very easy to understand
The message is coming through loud and clear.
see your way (clear) to doing something/to do something
to find that it is possible or convenient to do something
Small builders cannot see their way clear to take on many trainees.
clear
/klɪə(r)/
remove something/somebody
1 transitive to remove things that are not wanted or needed from something clear something The settlers cleared the land and planted crops.
It was several hours before the road was cleared after the accident.
It's your turn to clear the table (= to take away the dirty plates, etc. after a meal).
They started clearing a path through the dense jungle.
The work of clearing the debris is in its final stages.
She cleared a space on the sofa for him to sit down.
I had cleared my desk before I left.
clear A of B I cleared my desk of papers.
The streets had been cleared of snow.
clear B from/off A Clear all those papers off the desk.
The remains of the snow had been cleared from the streets.
Collocations Dictionary
adverb
completelytotallypartially…
preposition
fromofoff…
2 transitive clear something to make people leave a place Security officials tried to clear the area, fearing more bomb attacks.
After the bomb warning, police cleared the streets.
not be blocked
3 intransitive to move freely again; to no longer be blocked The traffic took a long time to clear after the accident.
The boy's lungs cleared and he began to breathe more easily.
of smoke, etc.
4 intransitive clear (away) when smoke, fog, etc. clears, it disappears so that it is easier to see things The mist will clear by mid-morning.
The fog was beginning to clear away.
As the dust cleared, we saw that the whole ceiling had come down.
As the smoke cleared, two fighter planes came into view.
of sky/weather
5 intransitive when the sky or the weather clears, it becomes brighter and free of cloud or rain The next day the weather cleared.
The sky cleared after the storm.
The rain is clearing slowly.
The clouds had not yet cleared.
Hopefully the storm would clear soon.
of liquid
6 intransitive when a liquid clears, it becomes transparent and you can see through it The muddy water slowly cleared.
your head/mind
7 intransitive, transitive if your head or mind clears, or you clear it, you become free of thoughts that worry or confuse you or the effects of alcohol, a hit on the head, etc. and you are able to think clearly As her mind cleared, she remembered what had happened.
clear something I went for a walk to clear my head.
Collocations Dictionary
adverb
suddenly
verb + clear
try tohelp (to)
of face/expression
8 intransitive if your face or expression clears, you stop looking angry or worried His face suddenly cleared as understanding dawned.
prove somebody innocent
9 transitive clear somebody (of something) to prove that somebody is innocent She was cleared of all charges against her.
Throughout his years in prison, he fought to clear his name.
He has finally been cleared of any wrongdoing.
Collocations Dictionary
adverb
formally
preposition
of
give official permission
10 transitive to give or get official approval for something to be done clear something His appointment had been cleared by the board.
clear something with somebody/something I'll have to clear it with the manager.
I'll have to clear it with the manager before I can refund your money.
11 transitive clear something to give official permission for a person, a ship, a plane or goods to leave or enter a place The plane had been cleared for take-off.
The goods had been cleared through customs.
12 transitive clear somebody to decide officially, after finding out information about somebody, that they can be given special work or allowed to see secret papers She hasn't been cleared by security.
money
13 intransitive, transitive clear (something) if a payment that is made into your bank account clears, or a bank clears it, the money is available for you to use Cheques usually take three working days to clear.
14 transitive clear something to gain or earn a sum of money as profit She cleared £1 000 on the deal.
15 transitive clear something if you clear a debt or a loan, you pay all the money back They sold $25 million in holdings in order to clear colossal bank debts.
We are economizing for a few months to try to clear our overdraft.
get over/past
16 transitive clear something to jump over or get past something without touching it The horse cleared the fence easily.
The car only just cleared (= avoided hitting) the gatepost.
in sport
17 transitive, intransitive clear (something) (in football (soccer) and some other sports) if you clear a ball, or a ball clears, it is kicked or hit away from the area near your own goal Idioms
to help somebody have a fresh, lively state of mind again
A brisk walk should blow the cobwebs away.
to improve a difficult or tense situation by talking about worries, doubts, etc.
This meeting will be an opportunity to clear the air and start the healing process.
to make the air less dirty or less humid (= warm and wet)
Storms were supposed to clear the air.
(informal) to prepare for an activity, event, etc. by removing anything that is not essential to it
to cough (= to force out air noisily through your throat) so that you can speak clearly
to remove things that are stopping the progress or movement of something
The ruling could clear the way for extradition proceedings.
Phrasal Verbs
clear
/klɪə(r)/
not near/touching
1 clear (of something/somebody) away from something/somebody; not near or touching something/somebody
Stand clear of the train doors.
He injured his arm as he jumped clear of the car.
By lap two Walker was two metres clear of the rest of the runners.
all the way
2 (especially North American English) all the way to something that is far away
She could see clear down the highway into the town.
Idioms
clear
/klɪə(r)/
Idioms
Word Origin
Middle English: from Old French cler, from Latin clarus.