clear the air

clear  (klîr)

adj. clear·er, clear·est

1. Free from clouds, mist, or haze: a clear day.

2. Not obscured or darkened; bright: clear daylight; a clear yellow.

3. Easily seen through; transparent: clear water.

4. Free from flaw, blemish, or impurity: a clear, perfect diamond; a clear record with the police.

5. Free from impediment, obstruction, or hindrance; open: a clear view; a clear path to victory.

6. Plain or evident to the mind; unmistakable: a clear case of cheating.

7. Easily perceptible to the eye or ear; distinct.

8. Discerning or perceiving easily; keen: a clear mind.

9. Free from doubt or confusion; certain.

10. Free from qualification or limitation; absolute: a clear winner.

11. Free from guilt; untroubled: a clear conscience.

12. Having been freed from contact, proximity, or connection: At last we were clear of the danger. The ship was clear of the reef.

13. Free from charges or deductions; net: a clear profit.

14. Containing nothing.

adv.

1. Distinctly; clearly: spoke loud and clear.

2. Out of the way; completely away: stood clear of the doors.

3. Informal All the way; completely: slept clear through the night; read the book clear to the end.

v. cleared, clear·ing, clears

v.tr.

1. To make light, clear, or bright.

2. To rid of impurities, blemishes, muddiness, or foreign matter.

3. To free from confusion, doubt, or ambiguity; make plain or intelligible: cleared up the question of responsibility.

4.

a. To rid of objects or obstructions: clear the table; clear the road of debris.

b. To make (a way or clearing) by removing obstructions: clear a path through the jungle.

c. To remove (objects or obstructions): clear the dishes; clear snow from the road.

5.

a. To remove the occupants of: clear the theater.

b. To remove (people): clear the children from the room.

6. Sports

a. To move or shoot (a ball or puck) away from the goal or out of the defensive zone.

b. To clear a puck out of (the defensive zone), as in ice hockey.

7. Computer Science

a. To rid (a memory location or buffer, for example) of instructions or data.

b. To remove (instructions or data) from memory.

8. To free from a legal charge or imputation of guilt; acquit: cleared the suspect of the murder charge.

9. To pass by, under, or over without contact: The boat cleared the dock.

10. To settle (a debt).

11. To gain (a given amount) as net profit or earnings.

12. To pass (a bill of exchange, such as a check) through a clearing-house.

13.

a. To secure the approval of: The bill cleared the Senate.

b. To authorize or approve: cleared the material for publication.

14. To free (a ship or cargo) from legal detention at a harbor by fulfilling customs and harbor requirements.

15. To give clearance or authorization to: cleared the plane to land.

16. To free (the throat) of phlegm by making a rasping sound.

v.intr.

1. To become clear: The sky cleared.

2. To go away; disappear: The fog cleared.

3.

a. To exchange checks and bills or settle accounts through a clearing-house.

b. To pass through the banking system and be debited and credited to the relevant accounts: The check cleared.

4. To comply with customs and harbor requirements in discharging a cargo or in leaving or entering a port.

n.

A clear or open space.

Phrasal Verb:

clear out Informal

To leave a place, usually quickly.

Idioms:

clear the air

To dispel differences or emotional tensions.

in the clear

1. Free from burdens or dangers.

2. Not subject to suspicion or accusations of guilt: The evidence showed that the suspect was in the clear.

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[Middle English cler, from Old French, from Latin clrus, clear, bright; see kel-² in Indo-European roots.]

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cleara·ble adj.

clearer n.

clearly adv.

clearness n.

Synonyms: clear, limpid, lucid, pellucid, transparent
These adjectives mean not opaque or clouded: clear, sediment-free claret; limpid blue eyes; lucid air; a pellucid brook; transparent crystal. See Also Synonyms at apparent.

Thesaurus

Verb

1.

clear the air - dispel differences or negative emotions; "The group called a meeting to finally clear the air" chase away, dispel, drive away, drive off, drive out, run off, turn back - force to go away; used both with concrete and metaphoric meanings; "Drive away potential burglars"; "drive away bad thoughts"; "dispel doubts"; "The supermarket had to turn back many disappointed customers"