police up
To pick up all the litter and rubbish from an area to make it clean and tidy
Meanings
(Military/institutional) To clean an area by picking up all litter, debris, or equipment
"Before leaving the training area, the soldiers were ordered to police up every piece of rubbish."
To enforce rules, standards, or behavior more strictly within an area or organization
"The new management was brought in to police up working practices across all departments."
This phrasal verb originates in military usage, where soldiers are ordered to 'police up' a campsite or training area by collecting all litter, spent cartridges, and debris. It is occasionally used in civilian institutional contexts (camps, events). It is not common in everyday civilian English and ESL learners should prefer 'clean up' or 'tidy up'.
Commonly used with
Forms
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