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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shook down
Verb
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The European flax bedding comes embellished with a crocheted seam just above the ruffled edge and looks like it was plucked right out of a Victorian trousseau.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
28 Feb. 2026 -
Rather than wait on her line tho, Sesno smartly came forward and plucked the ball out of the air before a shot could be taken.—
Clark Fahrenthold,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Some people like to vote on election day, said Dianne Clinkscale from Dallas, arguing that the county’s voters got cheated out their right on to vote.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 Mar. 2026
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Visitors to the sites at Independence Park were cheated when they were cut off from facts that enable us to imagine ourselves in the lives of those who lived and worked there.—
Carol Quillen,
Time,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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When residents are this squeezed, City Hall’s predictable response has been to charge us more.—
Bradley Schnell,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Mar. 2026
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The 2012 draft brought a decent linebacker in Olivier Vernon and squeezed one 1,00-yard season from running back Lamar Miller.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
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On Tuesday, facing reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes in an exhibition against Team USA, McCray stung a line drive the opposite way for a loud out.—
Andrew Baggarly,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
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After the match, that loss really stung.—
Bobby Narang,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Early in the second period, just after Greaves got caught out of the net while playing a puck to his right, Provorov hustled to the other side of the net and sprawled across the ice, blocking a shot by Florida’s Tomas Nosek that would have tied the score at 1.—
Aaron Portzline,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026
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The Ducks’ fourth line toiled low in the zone, and after the Jets hustled to avert the threat there, Trouba’s ostensibly harmless fling from the far corner found the net, appearing to hit Winnipeg defenseman Ville Heinola’s stick first.—
Andrew Knoll,
Oc Register,
28 Feb. 2026
Verb
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With a defense-first lineup stuck on the floor and no opportunity to advance the ball, the Nuggets had no choice but to settle for a 60-foot prayer by Gordon at the buzzer.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
10 Mar. 2026
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One of the problems with attracting qualified teachers is tied to a retirement system stuck in the past.—
Mark Batinick,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Two men were beaten outside a Santana Row restaurant on Sunday afternoon in an incident that is being investigated as a potential antisemitic hate crime, San Jose authorities said Tuesday.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
11 Mar. 2026
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If Mexico beats Italy, the three teams will be knotted at 3-1 and the winners will be determined by a tiebreaker, with the team that allowed the most runs eliminated.—
Assistant Sports Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Harper is thrilled, Whitney is screwed.—
Meg Walters,
Glamour,
2 Mar. 2026
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You just got screwed over by a duo!—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Feb. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Shook down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shook%20down. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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