A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

clean-fingered • clean-handed
clean-fingered —
1
. (of a musician, etc.) having quick and
nimble fingers: The clean-fingered playing and thoughtful ap-
proach distinguish his performance of the earlier pieces. 2.
honest; incorruptible: Desire for clean-fingered lottery regu-
lators ensured that none of them was remotely connected to
the gambling industry.
clean-handed —not guilty of any wrongdoing : Mature,
democratic institutions with clean-handed politics and social
justice are still a long way off.
clean room • dirty room
clean room —
1
. (also: white room) a room that is virtually
free of dust or bacteria (used in assembly of precision equip-
ment): The plant is a state-of-the-art facility that forms tran-
sistors onto large glass substrates, in a class–
1
00 clean room.
2. (med.) operating theater with a “clean-room” atmosphere:
It was a hospital clean room he was locked in. Purified air and
the smell of disinfectant.
dirty room —(med.) an operating room where the surgeon
has to deal with an infection: The hospital has four wards. In
addition, there is an operation theater for major procedures,
and a “dirty” room for minor cases.
clean shave • close shave
clean shave —(sl.) said of an act of swindling: We doubt if
any lady is aware of the very clean shave she is constantly un-
dergoing.
close shave —a dangerous situation that a person just man-
ages to avoid: I did not so much as get my feet wet when the
bridge fell, though it was a close shave.
clean-shaven • closely shaven
clean-shaven —said of a man not having a moustache or
beard: He provided a list of celebrated clean-shaven men and
also of celebrated beavers, as bearded men are termed.
closely shaven —said of a man with a neat, smooth shave:
He was tall, spare, with closely shaven face and gray hair, worn
rather long.