as in tidy
being clean and in good order
a distinguished-looking gentleman with a kempt beard and an old-world manner
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Recent Examples of kempt
The creeping ivy of rap had crawled over their white picket fences, across their kempt green lawns, and around their Victorian homes, weakening the old walls between cultures.
—
Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 5 June 2023
The whole place is well kempt.
—Amanda Walker, al, 15 Aug. 2020
There was a whiff of mystery, a sense that something more was going on behind those well-kempt exteriors.
—Aaron Gilbreath, Longreads, 9 Feb. 2018
Silence your internal neat freak A well-kempt garden is the toad’s worst enemy.
—Molly Marquand, Good Housekeeping, 16 May 2017
A well-kempt courtyard for visitors conceals the prison’s overcrowding—stuffed to nine times its capacity with up to 250 women sharing a cell.
—National Geographic, 19 Oct. 2016
Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 5 June 2023
The whole place is well kempt.
—Amanda Walker, al, 15 Aug. 2020
There was a whiff of mystery, a sense that something more was going on behind those well-kempt exteriors.
—Aaron Gilbreath, Longreads, 9 Feb. 2018
Silence your internal neat freak A well-kempt garden is the toad’s worst enemy.
—Molly Marquand, Good Housekeeping, 16 May 2017
A well-kempt courtyard for visitors conceals the prison’s overcrowding—stuffed to nine times its capacity with up to 250 women sharing a cell.
—National Geographic, 19 Oct. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kempt
Adjective
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That’s not an opinion shared by MVP Arena in Albany, though, which expects to turn a tidy profit this weekend.—
Justin Birnbaum,
Sportico.com,
29 Mar. 2026
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The Firkus house was clean and tidy, and the entryway table beside the front door was undisturbed.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The brain bug's intrinsic ick factor is undeniably high, but using their proboscises to suck thoughts directly from the brains of their unfortunate victims is a pretty neat party trick.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
2 Apr. 2026
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Trim them to clean, neat geometric shapes to contrast with the biomorphic shapes of hydrangeas.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Jenner, who shares daughter Stormi, 8, and son Aire, 4, with ex Travis Scott, showcased a neon chartreuse string bikini with lace trim.—
Danielle Minnetian,
FOXNews.com,
31 Mar. 2026
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Moreover, the trim little contraption cut a wholesome figure reminiscent of a Richard Scarry book—as if a courtesy tram birthed a tiny Zamboni.—
Henry Alford,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Kempt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kempt. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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