Kempt
What it means
Neat, tidy, and carefully maintained in appearance.
Reach for it when praising visible order with a slightly playful contrast to unkempt
The kempt courtyard welcomed visitors with clipped paths and clean benches.
Words to choose between 6
| playful |
|
|---|---|
| everyday | |
| professional | |
| literary |
-
playful
spick-and-span
Fits when spotless neatness deserves lively emphasis
Careful The phrase sounds old-fashioned and overstates a place that is merely kempt.
-
everyday
Fits when orderly appearance is all that needs saying
Careful Neat can praise precision or ingenuity and lacks the grooming emphasis.
-
everyday
Fits when things are put in order and free of clutter
Careful Tidy can sound modest and does not imply careful maintenance.
-
professional
Fits when arrangement follows a clear system
Careful Orderly is functional and may not look attractive.
-
professional
Fits when a person's appearance is carefully maintained
Careful Well-groomed applies awkwardly to most places and objects.
-
literary
Fits when compact neatness and good maintenance are visible
Careful Trim can concern body shape or cutting rather than overall order.
Opposites 3
- unkempt
- messy
- disheveled
Common phrases 3
-
neatly kempt
The neatly kempt garden showed years of patient attention.
-
kempt appearance
His kempt appearance reassured clients after the muddy site visit.
-
kempt grounds
Kempt grounds made the small library feel cared for.
Usage notes
Keep in mind
Kempt is valid but much rarer than unkempt and may sound like playful back-formation.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Naomi Persephone Amethyst, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Updated