Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To put into order; make neat.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb To make neat; arrange in an orderly, tidy way; to tidy.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb put (things or places) in order
  • verb care for one's external appearance

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Carefully trim the overhanging pastry to neaten.6.

    How to cook perfect quiche lorraine 2011

  • For projects with no hope of making the deadline, workers toiled instead to put up screening walls, or to neaten the piles of I-beams and rebar that normally littered the sites.

    China's Way Forward 2009

  • When told of her husband's efforts to neaten the home that day, Ms. Leight laughed, then said he's actually loosened up over the years.

    Obsessive-Compulsive Design Juliet Chung 2011

  • For projects with no hope of making the deadline, workers toiled instead to put up screening walls, or to neaten the piles of I-beams and rebar that normally littered the sites.

    China's Way Forward 2009

  • There is no need to clutter the entire home with a sewing project, if you neaten and clean as you sew.

    Home Living 2009

  • It's time to neaten up and reconsider the good old-fashioned blanket

    Down With Comforters! Sara Ruffin Costello 2011

  • For projects with no hope of making the deadline, workers toiled instead to put up screening walls, or to neaten the piles of I-beams and rebar that normally littered the sites.

    China's Way Forward 2009

  • For projects with no hope of making the deadline, workers toiled instead to put up screening walls, or to neaten the piles of I-beams and rebar that normally littered the sites.

    China's Way Forward 2009

  • Still, given the tall grass in his yard, the goat company returned with a scythe to neaten up.

    Free-Range Landscaping 2010

  • Still, given the tall grass in his yard, the goat company returned with a scythe to neaten up.

    Goat-Powered Lawn Care 2010

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