strike down

verb

struck down; struck down also stricken down; striking down; strikes down

transitive verb

: annul, nullify

the board struck down the appointment

especially : to declare (a law) illegal and unenforceable

the Supreme Court struck down the law

Synonyms

• abolish
• repeal
• cancel
• set aside
• roll back
• avoid
• overturn

Examples of strike down in a Sentence

a law that was later struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court as unconstitutional

Recent Examples on the Web

The justices overturned a ruling by Texas judges that would have struck down the popular benefit that came with Obamacare. —David G. Savage follow, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2025

The letter cites a March ruling by Judge Lee H. Rosenthal of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, which struck down a similar ban by the Texas A&M System. —Ryan Hopper, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025

Rules created by the Biden administration prohibiting schools and universities from discriminating against transgender students were struck down in a Thursday court ruling that applies nationwide. —Evan Mealins, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025

The constitutional amendment overturned a near-total ban that was enacted in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. —Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 2 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1779, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for strike down

• chinatown
• tumbledown
• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown

Kids Definition

strike down

verb

: to make null and void : annul

struck down the proposal

especially : to declare (a law) illegal and unenforceable

the court struck down the law

Legal Definition

strike down

transitive verb

: annul, nullify

the trustee…can strike down transfers

—J. J. White and R. S. Summers

especially : to declare (a law) illegal and unenforceable

the court struck down death penalty provisions

—L. H. Tribe