clean vs preen

clean

verb
  • To tidy up, make a place neat. 

  • To remove unnecessary files, etc. from (a directory, etc.). 

  • Synonym of clean up 

  • To remove equipment from a climbing route after it was previously lead climbed. 

  • To remove dirt from a place or object. 

  • To brush the ice lightly in front of a moving rock to remove any debris and ensure a correct line; less vigorous than a sweep. 

  • To remove guts and/or scales of a butchered animal. 

  • To make things clean in general. 

  • To purge a raw of any blemishes caused by the scanning process such as brown tinting and poor color contrast. 

adv
  • Fully and completely. 

noun
  • Removal of dirt. 

  • The first part of the event clean and jerk in which the weight is brought from the ground to the shoulders. 

adj
  • Pure, especially morally or religiously. 

  • Allowing an uninterrupted flow over surfaces, without protrusions such as racks or landing gear. 

  • Empty. 

  • Having the undercarriage and flaps in the up position. 

  • Being free of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). 

  • In an unmarked condition. 

  • Not having used drugs or alcohol. 

  • Cool or neat. 

  • Smooth, exact, and performed well. 

  • That does not damage the environment. 

  • Having relatively few impurities. 

  • Free from restraint or neglect; complete; entire. 

  • Not in possession of weapons or contraband such as drugs. 

  • Not dirty. 

  • Devoid of profanity. 

  • Without restrictions or penalties, or someone having such a record. 

  • Well-proportioned; shapely. 

  • Ascended without falling. 

  • Free from that which is useless or injurious; without defects. 

preen

verb
  • To comb; to make orderly. 

  • To spend time making oneself attractive and admiring one's appearance, e.g. in front of a mirror. 

  • To trim up, as trees. 

  • To improve the appearance of; groom; prettify. 

  • To flatter. 

  • To groom; to trim or dress with the beak, as the feathers. 

  • To show off, posture, or smarm. 

  • To pin; fasten. 

noun
  • bodkin; brooch 

  • A forked tool used by clothiers for dressing cloth. 

  • pin 

How often have the words clean and preen occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )