Faire le menage vs nettoyer

Question

I'm very familiar with the expression, "faire le menage". I chose to write "faire le nettoyage" to see if it would be accepted and it was marked wrong. The alternative phrase given was, "...mon marie et mois allons nettoyer..."

Larousse defines "nettoyer" as a transitive verb in which case doesn't "nettoyer" need a direct object? In that case, is "L'apres-midi mon mari et moi allons nettoyer et nos enfants vont ranger leurs chambres" correct? Don't you need to say "...mon mari et moi allons nettoyer la maison..."?

In English, the verb, "to clean" is both transitive and intransitive which differs from the French.

Merci et Bonne Continuation

Cécile Janty-Davies · Accepted Answer

Bonjour N. Hilary, 
Yes, you can use 'nettoyer' on its own to mean 'to do the cleaning' in French, but it's more common and natural to use the expression 'faire le ménage' ( and not faire le nettoyage) for general cleaning or housework.
'Nettoyer' typically means 'to clean' in a more specific sense - cleaning a particular object, surface, or area.
However, if you want to express the general concept of 'doing the cleaning' (as in doing household chores), French speakers more commonly use 'faire le ménage'.
So while 'nettoyer' isn't wrong, 'faire le ménage' is the more idiomatic way to express general cleaning activities in French.
p.s. Nettoyage is used for industrial-type cleaning.

Maarten Kamp · Answer

Hilary,

Cécile has beaten me to the discussion on ‘ faire le nettoyage ‘.

I will just add a bit to cover to 2nd part of your query. This is a phrase with ‘ implied ‘ direct object. It is a casual conversation between friends. Pauline has just mentioned that they are having guests to dinner at home that evening, and then it is added that she and her husband are ‘ cleaning ‘ that afternoon. In this context, it is understood that the cleaning is of ‘our house’ rather than something not yet mentioned, and in French everyday conversation ( as in English ), the direct object is not necessarily repeated but is implicit.