as in cheating
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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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shaking down
And that’s important, especially as players age, because teams like the Dolphins seize on shaking down injured, or underperforming talent.
—
Miami Herald, 26 Dec. 2025
Miami Herald, 26 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shaking down
Verb
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Contessa’s Corner Sports leagues, state gambling regulators and tribal leaders have all raised concerns that prediction market trades on sports don’t have the same level of guardrails as sportsbooks to protect against cheating by athletes, referees, coaches and other insiders.—
Alex Sherman,Contessa Brewer,
CNBC,
9 Jan. 2026
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The predictions were that unleashing AI to the world at large would lead to an exponential rise in cheating at school and that student essays would cease to be original.—
Degen Pener,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The Real Measure of Success in 2026 Productivity in 2026 won’t be about squeezing more into your day.—
Luciana Paulise,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
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This helps to prevent squeezing and mitigates friction on the feet for lasting comfort.—
Clara McMahon,
PEOPLE,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Luhmann, who traveled from Illinois to Minnesota to document the immigration enforcement surge, said his hands were stinging from the different smoke bombs and pepper sprays deployed that day.—
Minneapolis Star Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
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When treating frostbite at this stage, a person might feel stinging, burning and swelling in the affected area.—
Marina Johnson,
Louisville Courier Journal,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Or plucking Tater Tots straight off the baking sheet and then wiping your hands on your pants.—
Alyssa Brandt,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
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Caitlin Looby Last August, Lauren Isbell dove around Mott Island Dock at Isle Royale National Park, plucking invasive zebra mussels from the lakebed – sometimes with her fingers, other times with a credit-card sized piece of plastic attached to a lanyard on her wrist.—
Caitlin Looby,
jsonline.com,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Students were hustling around campus, coming and going on the penultimate Saturday of the semester.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
15 Dec. 2025
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The bubbling party scene in New York City was indeed a movie, and Puffy was hustling his way into the leading role.—
Essence,
Essence,
11 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Stevenson shed six tackles last week versus an elite Houston defense, ripping off a 20-yard run early before helping to salt the game away late with several carries of five-plus yards in the fourth quarter.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
25 Jan. 2026
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The Florida goalie sprinted the length of the ice — shedding his mitts along the way — and challenged Nedeljkovic before ripping off the San Jose goalie’s mask with the two trading punches.—
George Richards,
Miami Herald,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Spray the rack with cooking spray to keep food from sticking.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
26 Jan. 2026
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The network quickly moved to censor a transgressive sitcom parody where soon-to-be-Ramones-manager Danny Fields tries to cure a TV repairman’s hemorrhoids by sticking a lightbulb up his ass.—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Point Loma Nazarene’s women’s basketball team improved to 14-4 and climbed back on top of the PacWest Conference standings with a 10-2 mark after beating Azusa Pacific (80-55) and contender Vanguard (59-57) last week.—
Bill Center,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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In the final, Black & Alshon threw down the gauntlet, beating the top pair in three straight for gold.—
Todd Boss,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shaking down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shaking%20down. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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