A - Z Database
The expression clean or clear as a whistle dates from the 18th century and refers to the clean, pure sound a whistle should make, especially if it is...
This is a general attestation of fitness or qualification and derives from the certificate that ships had to carry from the 17th century, before putti...
To show a clean pair of heels is to set off quickly and leave one’s pursuers with nothing but a view of one’s heels. The expression dates from the 16t...
see Keep a clean sheet
A clean slate, as in having ‘wiped the slate clean’, is a metaphor for a fresh, new beginning. There are two equally valid contenders for the origin....
see Make a clean sweep
Slang expression from the early 19th century for being left with no money especially after gambling.
This expression is attributed to John Wesley (1703-1791) in Sermon 93. “Cleanliness is, indeed, next to godliness.” There is evidence to suggest, howe...
For centuries, one of the clearest sounds was that of church bells, which could be heard from miles away. Thus, clear as a bell means perfectly clear...
see Crystal clear
As clear as day means very easy to understand or see and dates from at least the 14th century. See also Plain as day.
The antonym of ‘clear as day’, a jocular way of expressing that something is not very clear at all, dates from the early 19th century.
see Plain as the nose on one’s face.
The word ‘cut’ is used here as an intensifier to stress that something is indeed very clear, in the sense that it has distinct and distinguishing outl...
Colloquial expression meaning to depart or go away, usually in the form of an imperative; dates from the early 19th century.