as in to cheat
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
the rumor is that he started his career shaking people down as an enforcer for the mob
Synonyms & Similar Words
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1
as in bunk
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shake down
Andrew Leahey, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2025
As soon as Masa kisses his son good-bye, a man Masa has evidently come to shake down for money spots him from across the courtyard and flees.
—Chris Klimek, Vulture, 24 July 2024
Liam Quinn, People.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Harmonies abound as Elliott and Aaliyah take turns bemoaning the wrongdoer, culminating in a double-time shakedown from Da Brat.
52.
—Steven J. Horowitz, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shake down
Verb
The memo frames DSTs as nothing more than attempt by foreign governments to shake down American technology businesses.
—Andrew Leahey, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2025
As soon as Masa kisses his son good-bye, a man Masa has evidently come to shake down for money spots him from across the courtyard and flees.
—Chris Klimek, Vulture, 24 July 2024
Noun
In a statement, Sharpe’s attorney Lanny Davis described the lawsuit as a shakedown attempt and claimed that the relationship between the accuser and Sharpe was consensual.
—Liam Quinn, People.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Harmonies abound as Elliott and Aaliyah take turns bemoaning the wrongdoer, culminating in a double-time shakedown from Da Brat.
52.
—Steven J. Horowitz, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shake down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shake down
Verb
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Iran's response: cheating and hiding its nuclear weapons program; sprinting toward a bomb; and trying to assassinate senior American officials, including President Trump.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 June 2025
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Trouble is, the elder Broadway managed to cheat St. Christopher out of his share of the plunder.—
Joe Leydon,
Variety,
13 June 2025
Noun
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Several steps up from the camp bunks of your youth, the suites come with a kitchenette, a freestanding gas fireplace, and an en-suite deep soaking tub and rainfall shower.—
Lydia Mansel,
Southern Living,
8 June 2025
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Who takes the lower bunk, the middle bunk or the higher bunk?—
Jim Ryan,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
Noun
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To replicate all of this at the LUNA facility required a lot of trial and error with camera angles and lighting.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
4 June 2025
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Developing a robust ethics, in other words, is participatory and cultural; rules have to be worked out in the complex context of the human experience, with a lot of trial and error.—
Cal Newport,
New Yorker,
3 June 2025
Noun
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Many of the vessels were sunk in very deep water, and a reconnaissance mission would require a significant amount of time and funds, by which point the more than 80-year-old wrecks could be little more than rust stains on the seafloor.—
Asia London Palomba,
Smithsonian Magazine,
2 June 2025
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Israel would also halt military and aerial reconnaissance activity over Gaza for 10 hours each day, and up to 12 hours on the days on the days in which hostages and prisoners were exchanged.—
Tom O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 May 2025
Verb
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In some towns, utility poles were removed so the caravans could squeeze through.—
Angela Jackson,
Forbes.com,
5 June 2025
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Hundreds of people squeezed into the Jewish Community Center in Boulder, Colo., for a vigil that featured prayer, singing and emotional testimony from a victim and witnesses of the firebombing attack in the city’s downtown, after a federal judge blocked the deportation of the suspect’s family.—
Colleen Slevin,
Los Angeles Times,
5 June 2025
Noun
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Hang it between trees or on a hammock stand to unwind outside all summer.—
Isabel Garcia,
People.com,
4 June 2025
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When someone is sleeping in an unadorned conventional hammock, a thin layer of fabric is all that separates the underside of their sleeping bag from the chilly night air.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
3 June 2025
Noun
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And given the test this month’s worth of games against postseason contenders has provided, the Dodgers simply needed to hold on.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
14 June 2025
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The Taos got inadequate results in the front crash test and for its headlights and pedestrian crash avoidance system.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
USA Today,
14 June 2025
Noun
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San Antonio officials said the search for the missing was focused on the creek.—
Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports,
Arkansas Online,
14 June 2025
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During that search, the Marines also found the remains of another Marine, Pfc.—
Kairi Lowery,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shake down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shake%20down. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
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