to steam clean
3
3.2
- phrasal verb
- /stiːm kliːn/
:
limpiar con vapor
- After the renovation, they decided to steam clean all the tiles to eliminate dust and debris.
- steam clean carpets
Every night at Disneyland they steam clean the entire park.
- Every night at Disneyland they steam clean the entire park.
Examples
-
You should steam clean your upholstery regularly to keep it looking fresh and new.
-
I have to sweep and mop every day, and it still looks disgusting even after steam cleaning.
Blog text (23) -
I steam cleaned our kitchen floors.
Blog text (26) -
Every night at Disneyland they steam clean the entire park.
-
I had to steam clean last time, and there's still sort of a shadow.
-
This is a semi-private corridor; several hotel employees are steam-cleaning the carpet.
Fiction book (1992) -
We steam-cleaned the garage, had some killer take-out from Punjab Palace.
-
The city must have taken over the building, for it had been steam-cleaned, the fire escapes painted, and the stoop completely redone.
Fiction book (1996) -
The buildings, now steam-cleaned white, she recalls from her earliest visits as being tobacco-colored and soft gray-green.
Fiction book (1999) -
The team will steam clean the carpets to remove any stains before the open house.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To remove dirt and stains
37
1.0
To clean a floor with a long handle and wet cloth
31
1.0
To remove something from a surface by washing with water or soap
11
3.7
Make something clean and free from bacteria
9
2.0
Clean something using water to remove dirt or stains
9
1.7
To clean clothes or furniture with hot water turned into gas to remove dirt
5
2.6
To remove liquid or dirt from a floor with a cloth
1
3.9
To clean a surface with a strong stream of water to remove dirt
1
1.0
To remove dirt or mud from a surface
To clean a surface using a strong spray of water to remove dirt or old paint
To clean something using water to remove dirt or chemicals
To clean something very well by scrubbing or washing
How Thorough
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to clean something using steam' is transparently built from 'steam' (to use steam) + 'clean' (to remove dirt), so the construction indicates the method/instrument of cleaning. This compositional pattern is predictable and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will reliably infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The verb steam clean comes from a simple image: hot steam is used to lift dirt and stains so the surface becomes clean. So steam clean means 'to clean something using steam'.