as in plucked
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
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Recent Examples of shaken down
Law firms are shaken down into submission.
—
Christopher Bouzy, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
Christopher Bouzy, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shaken down
Verb
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With its biergarten vibes, Wolff’s Biergarten feels like it’s been plucked straight from Germany.—
Lauren Dana Ellman,
Travel + Leisure,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Wentz was once plucked from a cocoon in North Dakota and thrown into the Philadelphia fire.—
Alec Lewis,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Lockdowns throttled economic activity and squeezed tax revenue, while public spending surged as governments tried to protect the most vulnerable.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Some claim younger drinkers, particularly Gen Z, are tipping less, if at all — leaving bartenders frustrated and financially squeezed.—
Peter Burke,
FOXNews.com,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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John Kell Amazon Web Services stung by massive outage.—
John Kell,
Fortune,
22 Oct. 2025
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Gaia sent a giant scorpion to stop Orion, who was stung and died.—
Hannah Parry,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Wipe the baseboards dry with a towel when you're done.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
17 Oct. 2025
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Just because it hasn’t been done, doesn’t mean it can’t be done.—
Don Riddell,
CNN Money,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Instead of slowly taking the ball out of the rim, the Celtics hustled to push the ball up court.—
Jay King,
New York Times,
9 Oct. 2025
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Without any additional hesitation, McMillian hustled over to the white backdrop to pose alongside Curry.—
Skyler Caruso,
PEOPLE,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Dale Ellis covers the federal courthouse beat for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, reporting on criminal and civil matters that impact Arkansans.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Oct. 2025
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Michele Di Gregorio made a stunning double save and was only beaten when a Vinicius Junior shot came back off the post and Jude Bellingham reacted quicker to it than Lloyd Kelly.—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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My take on Don’t Think is that becoming overly cerebral, stuck exclusively in my head, inhibits flow.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Oct. 2025
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The recurrent staging only makes the show’s narrative feel more insular, which works fine when there’s forward momentum, but this one is stuck looking backward.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Everybody got beat on a 48-yard pass off a third-and-17 (biggest play of the game).—
Ryan Finley,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 Oct. 2025
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The change comes after Ally reported third-quarter results that beat the Street.—
Lisa Kailai Han,
CNBC,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shaken down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shaken%20down. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.
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