I. ti ‧ dy 1 S3 /ˈtaɪdi/ BrE AmE adjective ( comparative tidier , superlative tidiest ) especially British English
[ Date: 1700-1800 ; Origin: tidy 'at an appropriate time' (13-18 centuries) , from tide ]
1 . a room, house, desk etc that is tidy is neatly arranged with everything in the right place SYN neat OPP untidy , messy :
a tidy desk
I try to keep the garden tidy.
Ellen’s room is always neat and tidy.
2 . someone who is tidy keeps their house, clothes etc neat and clean:
Chris is a naturally tidy person.
3 . a tidy sum/profit informal a large amount of money:
We sold the house for a tidy sum and moved south.
4 . a tidy mind British English if someone has a tidy mind, the way they think is very organized and clear
—tidily adverb
—tidiness noun [uncountable]
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ tidy British English a place, room etc that is tidy looks nice because everything has been arranged and put in the right place:
a tidy desk
|
I want to leave the place clean and tidy before we go.
▪ neat use this about things that are carefully arranged in a way that is nice to look at:
a neat pile of towels
|
The room was neat and tidy.
▪ immaculate /ɪˈmækjələt, ɪˈmækjʊlət/ a place or thing that is immaculate is perfectly clean and neat – use this to emphasize how clean something looks:
Our house was always immaculate.
▪ well-kept a well-kept building or garden is very well cared for and looks neat and clean:
a large house on well-kept grounds
▪ orderly arranged or organized in a sensible or neat way:
The room was orderly and uncluttered.
II. tidy 2 BrE AmE ( also tidy up ) verb ( past tense and past participle tidied , present participle tidying , third person singular tidies ) [intransitive and transitive]
to make a place look tidy:
Tidy your room!
It’s time we tidied up the office.
tidy up after somebody
I’m tired of tidying up after you boys (=tidying somewhere that someone else has made untidy) .
tidy something ↔ away phrasal verb
British English to put something back in the place where it should be, especially in a cupboard, drawer etc:
Let’s tidy these toys away.
III. tidy 3 BrE AmE noun ( plural tidies ) [countable] British English
desk/car/sink tidy a container for putting small objects in, used to keep your desk, car etc tidy