clearinghouse

noun

clear·​ing·​house ˈklir-iŋ-ˌhau̇s How to pronounce clearinghouse (audio)
1
: an establishment maintained by banks for settling mutual claims and accounts
2
: a central agency for the collection, classification, and distribution especially of information
broadly : an informal channel for distributing information or assistance

Examples of clearinghouse in a Sentence

an online clearinghouse for information on museums around the world
Recent Examples on the Web Live Coverage Feed 16 hours ago The Securities and Exchange Commission adopted rules aimed at pushing more Treasury trading into central clearinghouses. Andrew Duehren, WSJ, 13 Dec. 2023 The Times investigation found that: Los Angeles County does not rely on the state’s clearinghouse when selecting programs. Mackenzie Mays, Los Angeles Times, 4 Jan. 2024 Prosecutors said Binance chose not to implement anti-money-laundering measures, essentially allowing the firm to become a clearinghouse for all manner of illicit financial transactions. Devlin Barrett, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023 The urban planning principles that created this great passenger clearinghouse were changing as well. Benjamin Schneider, Los Angeles Times, 13 Nov. 2023 The state facility in Calvert County, a part of the Maryland Historical Trust, is tasked with research and curation and serves as a clearinghouse for public and private archaeological collections. Joe Heim, Washington Post, 24 Dec. 2023 In additional to representing those cities on the national political level, the organization serves as a clearinghouse for information and a networking system for local officials to connect with others and discuss their mutual concerns. Tom Sissom, arkansasonline.com, 3 Dec. 2023 A day after the congressional briefing, Bowser announced a new real-time crime center, which will be a joint clearinghouse to tackle crime in and around the nation's capital. Beatrice Peterson, ABC News, 11 Dec. 2023 Once an employee confirmed that the video posted by Ms. Watkins’s son was problematic, Google reported it to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a nonprofit that acts as the federal clearinghouse for flagged content. Kashmir Hill, New York Times, 27 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clearinghouse.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1792, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of clearinghouse was in 1792

Dictionary Entries Near clearinghouse

Cite this Entry

“Clearinghouse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clearinghouse. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

clearinghouse

noun
clear·​ing·​house -ˌhau̇s How to pronounce clearinghouse (audio)
1
: an institution run by banks for the exchanging of checks and claims
2
: a central agency for collecting and giving out information

Legal Definition

clearinghouse

noun
clear·​ing·​house ˈklir-iŋ-ˌhau̇s How to pronounce clearinghouse (audio)
: an institution that arranges for payment of checks owed by one bank to another

More from Merriam-Webster on clearinghouse

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!