diff --git a/hypothesis-python/RELEASE.rst b/hypothesis-python/RELEASE.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e64b965b46
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hypothesis-python/RELEASE.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+RELEASE_TYPE: patch
+
+|DirectoryBasedExampleDatabase| now removes empty directories after |ExampleDatabase.delete| is called.
diff --git a/hypothesis-python/docs/conf.py b/hypothesis-python/docs/conf.py
index 598bcad7c1..f794f26e1a 100644
--- a/hypothesis-python/docs/conf.py
+++ b/hypothesis-python/docs/conf.py
@@ -113,6 +113,25 @@ def setup(app):
     assert "xps" not in sys.modules
     sys.modules["xps"] = mod
 
+    def process_signature(app, what, name, obj, options, signature, return_annotation):
+        # manually override an ugly signature from .. autofunction. Alternative we
+        # could manually document with `.. function:: run_conformance_test(...)`,
+        # but that's less likely to stay up to date.
+        if (
+            name
+            == "hypothesis.internal.conjecture.provider_conformance.run_conformance_test"
+        ):
+            # so we know if this ever becomes obsolete
+            assert "_realize_objects" in signature
+            signature = re.sub(
+                r"_realize_objects=.*",
+                "_realize_objects=st.from_type(object) | st.from_type(type).flatmap(st.from_type))",
+                signature,
+            )
+        return signature, return_annotation
+
+    app.connect("autodoc-process-signature", process_signature)
+
 
 language = "en"
 exclude_patterns = ["_build", "prolog.rst"]
diff --git a/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/database.py b/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/database.py
index 9429339997..b394a4ce77 100644
--- a/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/database.py
+++ b/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/database.py
@@ -511,8 +511,20 @@ def move(self, src: bytes, dest: bytes, value: bytes) -> None:
     def delete(self, key: bytes, value: bytes) -> None:
         try:
             self._value_path(key, value).unlink()
+        except OSError:
+            return
+
+        # try deleting the key dir, which will only succeed if the dir is empty
+        # (i.e. ``value`` was the last value in this key).
+        try:
+            self._key_path(key).rmdir()
         except OSError:
             pass
+        else:
+            # if the deletion succeeded, also delete this key entry from metakeys.
+            # (if this key happens to be the metakey itself, this deletion will
+            # fail; that's ok and faster than checking for this rare case.)
+            self.delete(self._metakeys_name, key)
 
     def _start_listening(self) -> None:
         try:
diff --git a/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/internal/conjecture/provider_conformance.py b/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/internal/conjecture/provider_conformance.py
index 49668f6ba7..f4fdd57c8f 100644
--- a/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/internal/conjecture/provider_conformance.py
+++ b/hypothesis-python/src/hypothesis/internal/conjecture/provider_conformance.py
@@ -338,8 +338,9 @@ def run_conformance_test(
     *,
     context_manager_exceptions: Collection[type[BaseException]] = (),
     settings: Optional[Settings] = None,
-    _realize_objects: SearchStrategy[Any] = st.from_type(object)
-    | st.from_type(type).flatmap(st.from_type),
+    _realize_objects: SearchStrategy[Any] = (
+        st.from_type(object) | st.from_type(type).flatmap(st.from_type)
+    ),
 ) -> None:
     """
     Test that the given ``Provider`` class conforms to the |PrimitiveProvider|
diff --git a/hypothesis-python/tests/cover/test_database_backend.py b/hypothesis-python/tests/cover/test_database_backend.py
index 9a7fb62fbe..7a635f3b5e 100644
--- a/hypothesis-python/tests/cover/test_database_backend.py
+++ b/hypothesis-python/tests/cover/test_database_backend.py
@@ -738,13 +738,13 @@ def test_metakeys(tmp_path):
     db.save(b"k1", b"v2")
     assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == {b"k1"}
 
-    # deleting all the values from a key doesn't (currently?) clean up that key
+    # deleting all the values from a key removes that metakey
     db.delete(b"k1", b"v1")
     db.delete(b"k1", b"v2")
-    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == {b"k1"}
+    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == set()
 
     db.save(b"k2", b"v1")
-    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == {b"k1", b"k2"}
+    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == {b"k2"}
 
 
 class TracksListens(ExampleDatabase):
@@ -849,3 +849,19 @@ def test_database_equal(db1, db2):
 )
 def test_database_not_equal(db1, db2):
     assert db1 != db2
+
+
+def test_directory_db_removes_empty_dirs(tmp_path):
+    db = DirectoryBasedExampleDatabase(tmp_path)
+    db.save(b"k1", b"v1")
+    db.save(b"k1", b"v2")
+    assert db._key_path(b"k1").exists()
+    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == {b"k1"}
+
+    db.delete(b"k1", b"v1")
+    assert db._key_path(b"k1").exists()
+    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == {b"k1"}
+
+    db.delete(b"k1", b"v2")
+    assert not db._key_path(b"k1").exists()
+    assert set(db.fetch(db._metakeys_name)) == set()