Definition

The act of organizing or cleaning up things to make them neat and orderly.

Example

She spent the afternoon tidying her room before the guests arrived.

Conversation

I spent the whole afternoon tidying my room.

That sounds productive! How did it go?

It was great to finally see everything organized after all that tidying.

I should really do that too; my space is a mess!

Synonyms & Antonyms

Definition

To make something neat and organized by removing clutter or arranging items properly.

Example

She spent the afternoon tidying her room before the guests arrived.

Tense Forms

Conversation

I spent the whole afternoon tidying up my room.

That sounds productive! How did it go?

It was a bit of a challenge, but now it looks great after tidying.

Root Explanation

Tidying → It is formed from "tidy" (from Middle English *tidy*, meaning neat or in order) and "-ing" (a suffix used to form present participles). The word "tidying" means the act of making something neat or in order.

Memory Tip

Think of making things 'neat' ('tidy') and the '-ing' shows it's an action. So, tidying is the action of making things neat.

Visually Confused Words