1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

cracking down (on)

verb

present participle of crack down (on)
as in sitting on
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force a repressive government that cracked down on political demonstrations

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cracking down (on)
  1. quelling
  2. suppressing
  3. subduing
  4. slapping down
Verb
  • The break with Callaway was the first sign that Good Good’s attempts at quelling the crisis were not going well after Clark’s statement on social media Wednesday night.
    — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
  • As Matt Reeves is hard at work in Gotham City, James Gunn is quelling some overeager fans about the timeline of the Batman trilogy.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of quelling
Verb
  • In fact, El Nino is directly responsible for suppressing Atlantic hurricanes, and guess what?
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Other immune-suppressing medicines for serious systemic disease can include CellCept (mycophenolate), Azasan (azathioprine), or cyclophosphamide.
    — Julie Scott, Verywell Health, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of suppressing
Verb
  • Beer that was fresh, full of flavor and aroma, and hadn’t traveled hundreds of miles or been pasteurized subduing the bright flavors.
    — Blaine Callahan, Hartford Courant, 7 Sep. 2026
  • The drones rip through the hallways scanning for a threat before disorienting a suspect using flashing lights and subduing them using pepper balls or by ramming into their body, the company says.
    — Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of subduing
Verb
  • As lawyers crowded in, Reddington could be seen slapping down a sheaf of papers.
    — Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The production runs for 2026 and 2027 are sold out, but future flyers can jump in the queue for the 2028 build now by slapping down a deposit of US$8,000.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 14 Oct. 2025
Definition of slapping down
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.

Browse Nearby Words

cracking
cracking down (on)
cracking (on)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cracking down (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cracking%20down%20%28on%29. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All