as in sitting on
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force
a repressive government that cracked down on political demonstrations
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cracking down (on)
Verb
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Rather than quelling terrorist attacks, permanently suppressing Palestinian aspirations would likely fuel an endless insurgency.—
Bloomberg Opinion,
Twin Cities,
16 Sep. 2025 -
Giddey also took a significant step toward quelling concerns about him as a shooter.—
Bobby Krivitsky,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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By solving MXene’s stability problem and suppressing chloride corrosion, the research delivers a material that balances conductivity, durability, and performance.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Sep. 2025
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The focus of the nearly year-long legal battle has been 23XI and Front Row accusing NASCAR and CEO Jim France of suppressing the competition, and NASCAR countersued in March.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Giants won in all kinds of encouraging ways while subduing the wild-card-leading Cubs in a 5-2 victory Tuesday night.—
Andrew Baggarly,
New York Times,
27 Aug. 2025
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The two also showed a demonstration of what a K9 takedown looks like, with Humphries acting as a target and K9 Bob subduing him.—
Richard Requena,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Cracking down (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cracking%20down%20%28on%29. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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