cracked down; cracking down; cracks down
: to take positive regulatory or disciplinary action
Synonyms
Examples of crackdown in a Sentence
Noun
Companies that pollute are the target of a new crackdown.
Verb
a repressive government that cracked down on political demonstrations
Recent Examples on the Web
Tony Romm The Washington Post, arkansasonline.com, 1 Dec. 2024
Elphaba has helped the two tyrants permanently transform the monkeys against their will, and worse, strengthened the ensuing crackdown against the animals; hence, Elphaba is horrified by her own actions and vows to stand against Oz from that point on.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2024
Alison Durkee, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024
The crisis diminished earlier this spring following a executive order from President Joe Biden that cracked down on border crossings.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 1 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for crackdown 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Privately, Trump's top aides have considered new candidates to lead the CFPB who are expected to soften its crackdown on the financial industry, The Washington Post previously reported.
—Tony Romm The Washington Post, arkansasonline.com, 1 Dec. 2024
Elphaba has helped the two tyrants permanently transform the monkeys against their will, and worse, strengthened the ensuing crackdown against the animals; hence, Elphaba is horrified by her own actions and vows to stand against Oz from that point on.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2024
Verb
The move followed increasing governmental measures cracking down on the app due to its Chinese ties, with Biden signing a law banning the app from government devices in 2022, even as the president’s campaign has continued using the app.
—Alison Durkee, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024
The crisis diminished earlier this spring following a executive order from President Joe Biden that cracked down on border crossings.
—Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 1 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for crackdown
Dictionary Entries Near crackdown
Cite this Entry
“Crackdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crackdown. Accessed 7 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share