tidy

See also: Tidy

English

Etymology

From Middle English tidy, tydy, tidi (“timely, seasonal, opportune”), from tide (“time”) +‎ -y. Cognate with Dutch tijdig (“timely”), Middle Low German tīdich (“timely”), German zeitig (“seasonal, timely”), Danish tidig (“timely”), Swedish tidig (“timely”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈtaɪdi/
- Audio (UK) (file)
Rhymes: -aɪdi

Adjective

tidy (comparative tidier, superlative tidiest)

Arranged neatly and in order.
Keep Britain tidy by picking up litter.
Not messy; neat and controlled.
(colloquial) Satisfactory; comfortable.
(colloquial) Generous, considerable.
The scheme made a tidy profit.
(obsolete) In good time; at the right time; timely; seasonable; opportune; favourable; fit; suitable.
- 1573, Thomas Tusser, Five Hundred Points of Good Husbandry
  if weather be fair and tidy
(obsolete) Brave; smart; skillful; fine; good.
Appropriate or suitable as regards occasion, circumstances, arrangement, or order.

Synonyms

(arranged neatly): neat, orderly, presentable, spick and span; see also Thesaurus:orderly or Thesaurus:clean
(at the right time): opportune, seasonable; see also Thesaurus:timely
(appropriate or suitable): apt, fit; see also Thesaurus:suitable

Antonyms

(not messy): messy, untidy

Derived terms

hair-tidy

Related terms

tidily
tidiness

Translations

arranged neatly

Armenian: կոկիկ (hy) (kokik)
Bulgarian: спретнат (bg) (spretnat), подреден (bg) (podreden)
Catalan: endreçat (ca)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 整齊／整齐 (zh) (zhěngqí)
Czech: uklizený
Danish: ordentlig, opryddet
Dutch: net (nl), proper (nl), rein (nl)
Finnish: siisti (fi)
French: ordonné (fr)
German: sauber (de), ordentlich (de)
Greek: τακτοποιημένος (el) (taktopoiiménos), νοικοκυρεμένος (el) (noikokyreménos), περιποιημένος (el) (peripoiiménos), φροντισμένος (el) (frontisménos)
Ancient: κόσμιος (kósmios)
Irish: cúirialta
Italian: ordinato (it) m
Japanese: こざっぱりした (kozappari shita)
Kurdish:
Central Kurdish: پاک و تەمیز‎ (pak û temîz)
Latin: mundus
Malagasy: milamina (mg)
Maori: nahanaha, pūhangaiti
Norwegian:
Bokmål: ryddig (no)
Nynorsk: ryddig
Persian: پاکیزه‎ (fa) (pâkize)
Plautdietsch: krakjt
Polish: schludny (pl) m
Portuguese: limpo (pt), ordenado (pt), arrumado (pt)
Russian: аккура́тный (ru) (akkurátnyj), опря́тный (ru) (oprjátnyj), чи́стый (ru) (čístyj)
Scots: dink
Scottish Gaelic: cunbhalach
Slovak: úhľadný, usporiadaný, upravený
Spanish: ordenado (es), pulcro (es), prolijo (es)
Thai: เรียบร้อย (th) (rîiap-rɔ́ɔi)
Welsh: taclus (cy)
Yiddish: זויבער‎ (zoyber), ציכטיק‎ (tsikhtik)

generous, considerable

Bulgarian: значителен (bg) (značitelen)
Catalan: considerable (ca), bo (ca)
German: ordentlich (de)

Verb

tidy (third-person singular simple present tidies, present participle tidying, simple past and past participle tidied)

To make tidy; to neaten.
There's a work room, with an orange-scaled kobold tidying up a series of massaging tables

Translations

to make tidy

Bulgarian: подреждам (bg) (podreždam), разтребвам (bg) (raztrebvam)
Catalan: endreçar (ca), ordenar (ca), netejar (ca)
Dutch: opruimen (nl), schoonmaken (nl)
Finnish: siistiä (fi)
Galician: limpar (gl), ordenar (gl)
German: aufräumen (de), säubern (de), ordnen (de)
Hungarian: takarít (hu)
Kazakh: реттеу (retteu)
Malagasy: mandamina (mg)
Maori: rau(w)iri (of a garden with weeds), whakapaipai, whakaraupapa (systematise), tātai
Persian: مرتب کردن‎ (fa)
Polish: sprzątać (pl) impf
Russian: убира́ть (ru) (ubirátʹ), приводи́ть в поря́док (privodítʹ v porjádok), (informal) наводи́ть чистоту (navodítʹ čistotu)
Slovak: upraviť
Spanish: ordenar (es)
Welsh: tacluso (cy)

Noun

tidy (plural tidies)

A tabletop container for pens and stationery.
a desk tidy
A cover, often of tatting, drawn work, or other ornamental work, for the back of a chair, the arms of a sofa, etc.
(dated) A child's pinafore.
- 1846, Miss Lambert, The Handbook of Needlework:
  A much coarser cotton , according to the fancy of the worker , may be used for the trimmings of night dresses , petticoats , D'Oyleys , tidies, etc.
The wren.
- 1612, Michael Drayton, chapter 13, in [John Selden], editor, Poly-Olbion. Or A Chorographicall Description of Tracts, Riuers, Mountaines, Forests, and Other Parts of this Renowned Isle of Great Britaine, […], London: […] H[umphrey] L[ownes] for Mathew Lownes; I. Browne; I. Helme; I. Busbie, published 1613, OCLC 1049089293:
  The Tydie for her notes as delicate as they

Translations

tabletop container for pens and stationery

Irish: coimeádán m, gabhdán m

Interjection

tidy

(Wales) Expression of agreement or positive acknowledgement, usually in reply to a question; great, fine.