clearinghouse

noun

clear·​ing·​house ˈklir-iŋ-ˌhau̇s 

1

: an establishment maintained by banks for settling mutual claims and accounts

2

: a central agency for the collection, classification, and distribution especially of information

broadly : an informal channel for distributing information or assistance

Examples of clearinghouse in a Sentence

an online clearinghouse for information on museums around the world

Recent Examples on the Web

Launching a stablecoin clearinghouse requires developing partnerships with stablecoin issuers. —Ben Weiss, Fortune, 31 Mar. 2026

Prices for plastic resins have already surged by double digits across most manufacturing categories in the past 30 days, according to the Plastics Exchange, an independent clearinghouse that tracks transaction data for the resin market. —Julian Torres, CNN Money, 30 Mar. 2026

Moreover, Rogers’ decision placed GCC High on the FedRAMP Marketplace, the government’s influential online clearinghouse of all the cloud providers that are under review or already authorized. —Renee Dudley, ProPublica, 18 Mar. 2026

The clearinghouse process has been used by Citizens for a little more than a decade in its efforts to shed policies. —Jim Turner, Sun Sentinel, 9 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1792, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for clearinghouse

• boardinghouse
• charterhouse
• coffeehouse
• customhouse
• firehouse
• meetinghouse
• motherhouse
• packinghouse
• pilothouse
• powerhouse
• slaughterhouse
• summerhouse

Kids Definition

clearinghouse

noun

clear·​ing·​house -ˌhau̇s 

1

: an institution run by banks for the exchanging of checks and claims

2

: a central agency for collecting and giving out information

Legal Definition

clearinghouse

noun

clear·​ing·​house ˈklir-iŋ-ˌhau̇s 

: an institution that arranges for payment of checks owed by one bank to another