to clear one's head
1
3.9
- phrasal verb
:
despejar la mente
- To think better, she decided to meditate and clear her head of distractions.
- try to clear her head
- help clear her head
- need to clear her head
Examples
-
She decided to leave her cell and go for a walk, maybe row for an hour, and clear her head.
Fiction book (1991) -
A swim would clear her head.
Fiction book (1996) -
Now I just do it to clear my head.
-
I needed to clear my head.
-
Try to clear your head.
-
The cool air out there cleared my head.
-
That's why I come here and clear my head.
-
She decided to go for a nice long walk to clear her head and hopefully come to some constructive conclusions about what to do with the rest of her life.
Fiction book (2002) -
On this November day, imminent snow had brought them to full darkness, and Clara had come as usual, carrying her flashlight but not using it, up the trail from the back of the school, letting the walk clear her head.
Fiction book (1993) -
I went for a long walk to clear my head after a stressful day.
Synonyms
38
3.5
To use your mind clearly without being confused
34
3.4
Able to use your mind without confusion to make good decisions
6
7.0
To calm your mind and think clearly
6
4.3
To take time to put your ideas in order and calm down before you speak
6
4.4
Pause and think clearly before you speak or decide
5
7.7
Put your thoughts and feelings in order after a time of confusion
1
3.7
To stop worrying and think calmly to focus
1
3.4
To clear your head after feeling tired or distracted
To make your ideas clear and organized after feeling confused
Antonyms
How Clear
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'clear' (remove/clean), the possessive 'one's', and 'head' (mind): it literally means removing thoughts so the mind is clearer. This is a common, cross-linguistically attested metaphor (clear/empty the mind) and follows a straightforward compositional pattern, so a B1 learner who knows the parts would likely understand it.
Etymology
Clear one's head comes from the simple image of removing fog or clutter from your head, like clearing a window to let fresh air in. That's why it means 'to stop thinking about confusing or upsetting thoughts and feel calmer'.