mopped up; mopping up; mops up
1
British
: to consume eagerly
2
: to gather as if by absorbing
3
: to overcome decisively : trounce
4
: to clear (an area) of remaining pockets of resistance in the wake of a military offensive
: to complete a project, transaction, or task
Synonyms
Examples of mop-up in a Sentence
Noun
the general announced that the remaining fighting would be only a mop-up to a war that was all but over
Recent Examples on the Web
Jerry Beach, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
After gaining just 25 yards on its first three drives under two-year starter Ashton Daniels, Stanford coach Troy Taylor switched to freshman Elijah Brown, whose only previous experience was in mop-up duty against Cal Poly.
—Harold Gutmann, The Mercury News, 19 Oct. 2024
Caelyn Pender, The Mercury News, 3 Oct. 2024
Winds have prevented aircraft from flying, but fire crews have water on the perimeter and have been mopping up hot spots, Jason Clawson, an operations section chief, said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 12 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mop-up 
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Noun
The Mets’ two wins came in Game 2, a bullpen game for the Dodgers, and Game 5, when mop-up man Brent Honeywell Jr. threw four innings after Jack Flaherty was tattooed for eight runs.
—Jerry Beach, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
After gaining just 25 yards on its first three drives under two-year starter Ashton Daniels, Stanford coach Troy Taylor switched to freshman Elijah Brown, whose only previous experience was in mop-up duty against Cal Poly.
—Harold Gutmann, The Mercury News, 19 Oct. 2024
Verb
Firefighters were planning to continue reinforcing control lines and containment and mopping up the fire’s interior, CalFire added.
—Caelyn Pender, The Mercury News, 3 Oct. 2024
Winds have prevented aircraft from flying, but fire crews have water on the perimeter and have been mopping up hot spots, Jason Clawson, an operations section chief, said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 12 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mop-up
Dictionary Entries Near mop-up
Cite this Entry
“Mop-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mop-up. Accessed 15 Nov. 2024.
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