Just because everyone uses it doesn't mean it's the standard usage.In informal speech or writing 'declutter' is fine, but in formal usage, the longer history of 'unclutter' seems to favor it. Other online dictionaries seem to have both in equal measure. The OED (online version behind a security wall) has an entry for 'unclutter' dated to 1930. Using google as an informal research tool, unclutter existed well before 'declutter', but has in the past 10 years declined in favor of 'declutter'. A verb to result in that situation (of actively removing a mess) would naturally be 'unclutter', but 'declutter' also sounds like it should work. I think they are both appropriate to describe the action of clearing your desk.įirst personal opinion, second research (because the research can only be motivated by opinion).Īs an AmE speaker, 'uncluttered' seems to me to be the canonical adjective 'decluttered' sounds a little strange, like someone couldn't remember the usual word and picked a (very reasonable) prefix out of many reasonable ones. Wednesday 22 November 1944, Dundee Courier, Angus, Scotland
Mr Editor, why not lead a campaign to de-clutter education? You would have the support of many Scottish teachers who have had their fill of banking, dairying. Source: Ngram shows that declutter is a bit more recent in usage than unclutter and that they are not very common terms compared to the the adjective
used to add the meaning 'opposite', 'remove', or 'reduce' to a noun or verb:.Looking at the two prefixes in question (de- and un-) they are both used to indicate the opposite of as in the case of declutter and unclutter.
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