cleanly

Everyday

1. Cleanly means in a neat, smooth way, with one quick even cut or break and no mess. tree →
2. Cleanly means in a clean way, without making things dirty. tree →
3. In sport, cleanly means fairly and well, without a foul or a fumble. tree →

In the lessons

In craft lessons a sharp knife or scissors cut cleanly; in science a bone or stick can break cleanly. In sport a goalkeeper catches the ball cleanly, and a fair tackle is made cleanly. Phrases: cut cleanly, break cleanly, burn cleanly, catch cleanly.

Examples

• The sharp scissors cut the paper cleanly. tree →
• The branch snapped cleanly in two. tree →
• The keeper caught the ball cleanly. tree →
• Gas burns more cleanly than coal. tree →
• He won the race cleanly, without pushing anyone. tree →
• The vet said the bone had broken cleanly and would heal well. tree →
• Wipe the knife so it slices the cake cleanly. tree →
• Karen herself was dressed very neatly and cleanly; she was taught to read and to sew, and people said that she was pretty. tree →

Note

An adverb: it tells how something is done (cut cleanly). The adjective is «clean». Pronounced KLEEN-lee. Do not confuse with the rare adjective «cleanly» (KLEN-lee), which means keeping oneself clean.