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
Related Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shakedown
Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 13 June 2025
The unlucky shakedown targets are the hotels and airport concessionaires that now will be required to pay a minimum hourly wage that ratchets up to $30, plus an $8.35 per hour health insurance payment, by July 2028.
—Susan Shelley, Oc Register, 28 May 2025
Ronda Racha Penrice, HollywoodReporter, 25 Apr. 2025
Before Clint enters a back-room poker game in the store where the enforcer needs to shake down one of the players, Hank runs down the top five underdog movies of all time.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 6 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shakedown
Verb
In February 2022, Avenatti was also convicted for stealing nearly $300,000 in book proceeds from Daniels and defrauding several other clients while attempting a shakedown of sports clothing giant Nike.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 13 June 2025
The unlucky shakedown targets are the hotels and airport concessionaires that now will be required to pay a minimum hourly wage that ratchets up to $30, plus an $8.35 per hour health insurance payment, by July 2028.
—Susan Shelley, Oc Register, 28 May 2025
Noun
With limited options to generate money, Ray has the pair pose as DEA agents to shake down small-time drug dealers.
—Ronda Racha Penrice, HollywoodReporter, 25 Apr. 2025
Before Clint enters a back-room poker game in the store where the enforcer needs to shake down one of the players, Hank runs down the top five underdog movies of all time.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 6 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shakedown
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shakedown
Verb
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Two cars owned by Penske, were forced to start from the back of this year’s Indy 500 because of a cheating scandal.—
Bill Koenig,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
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The cheating rumors were intensified online, but what is the truth?—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
29 July 2025
Noun
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The names of previous detainees were carved onto the mental bunks.—
Juwayriah Wright,
Time,
15 July 2025
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He was told to sit on his bunk for the count, an interminable process that involved tallying every prisoner on the farm, from the men locked down in solitary cells to those wrangling cattle in far‑flung fields.—
Literary Hub
July 8,
Literary Hub,
8 July 2025
Noun
-
Learn all aspects of your business, learn from others, learn from trial and error.—
Steve Metsch,
Chicago Tribune,
22 July 2025
-
Because different things trigger perioral dermatitis in different people, prevention and treatment often comes down to a lot of trial and error.—
Marci Robin,
Allure,
18 July 2025
Noun
-
Oleksandr Dmitriev, the founder of a Ukrainian system that centralizes feeds from thousands of drone crews across the frontline, told Reuters the outage was an example of the shortcomings of relying on cloud services for military operations, particularly battlefield drone reconnaissance.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
25 July 2025
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But in reality, airplanes were used for guidance, observation and reconnaissance, aiding ground troops far more often than fighting other aviators in the sky.—
Lillian Ali,
Smithsonian Magazine,
25 July 2025
Verb
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In particular, the price of rice has doubled, squeezing many household budgets despite government handouts.—
Orianna Rosa Royle,
Fortune,
20 July 2025
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Then, squeeze your Magic Eraser a few times to activate the foaming bubbles.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
20 July 2025
Noun
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Walks in the woods, scenic drives, birdwatching, hammock snoozes, picnics and stargazing should all be on the agenda.—
Michael Salerno,
AZCentral.com,
25 July 2025
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The hammock, which is hand-spun using organic materials, sans dyes and toxins.—
Blake Bakkila,
Architectural Digest,
22 July 2025
Noun
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After performing a field test, his suspicions were confirmed.—
Colson Thayer,
People.com,
1 Aug. 2025
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Western blot: If the ELISA is positive or equivocal, this more specific test is used to help confirm the presence of Lyme antibodies.—
Matthew Binnicker,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The king's ransom paid Apple for Google search priority has been called into question due to the government's antitrust case against Alphabet .—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
1 Aug. 2025
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This widened the search area and led to her discovery.—
Gabrielle Rockson,
People.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shakedown.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shakedown. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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