1
as in to ridicule
to make (someone or something) the object of unkind laughter
nowadays the aging activist is routinely shot down in most quarters of the media and dismissed as an irrelevant crank
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to dismiss
to reject by or as if by a vote
every one of my fund-raising ideas was shot down by the other club members
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to refute
to prove to be false
the results of several studies shoot down the hypothesis that coffee causes heart attacks
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shoot down
During the sentencing hearing, Roth attempted to argue that the gun was never fired and no one was ever harmed, but Cannon shot down each argument.
—
Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 4 Feb. 2026
Geopolitical tensions flare Markets extended their losses and volatility picked up after reports that the United States shot down an Iranian drone that had been approaching a US aircraft carrier.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 3 Feb. 2026
The Shahed-139 drone was shot down by an F-35C fighter jet from the Lincoln, which was sailing about 500 miles (800 kilometers) from Iran’s southern coast, Hawkins said.
—Konstantin Toropin, Chicago Tribune, 3 Feb. 2026
At about two this morning, the familiar howl of air-raid sirens woke me in the center of Kyiv, followed by the low thuds of anti-aircraft cannons attempting to shoot down Russian drones.
—Simon Shuster, The Atlantic, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shoot down
Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 4 Feb. 2026
Geopolitical tensions flare Markets extended their losses and volatility picked up after reports that the United States shot down an Iranian drone that had been approaching a US aircraft carrier.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 3 Feb. 2026
The Shahed-139 drone was shot down by an F-35C fighter jet from the Lincoln, which was sailing about 500 miles (800 kilometers) from Iran’s southern coast, Hawkins said.
—Konstantin Toropin, Chicago Tribune, 3 Feb. 2026
At about two this morning, the familiar howl of air-raid sirens woke me in the center of Kyiv, followed by the low thuds of anti-aircraft cannons attempting to shoot down Russian drones.
—Simon Shuster, The Atlantic, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shoot down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoot down
Verb
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The older version of the game, called Test cricket, spreads over five full days of play, and its duration as well as its colonial-era quirks (players wear white while representing their country and take breaks during the day for lunch and tea) have often lent themselves to ridicule.—
Erin Florio,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Feb. 2026
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The move was ridiculed by lawyers outside Paul Weiss, and more than 140 alums of the firm signed a letter assailing it as well.—
Meg Kinnard,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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After days of deliberations, the House justice committee voted to dismiss the impeachment complaints filed by left-wing activists and a lawyer against Marcos.—
JIM GOMEZ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
Arkansas Online,
5 Feb. 2026
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Saab denied the allegations and appealed to have the charges dismissed on grounds of diplomatic immunity.—
Landon Mion,
FOXNews.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But the company is refuting the claims.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
16 Feb. 2026
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But Kennedy was equally as defiant and doubled down on his stance, strongly refuting the allegations directed towards him.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
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At one point, ref Michael Oliver takes pleasure in mocking a poor first touch from Conor Gallagher, which the Tottenham midfielder takes in good humour.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
18 Feb. 2026
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That one of the bartenders in New Orleans reportedly mocked him by referencing Holes to THRfeels like something right out of that movie.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Democrats demanded new restrictions on federal immigration agents in exchange for voting to fund DHS after Alex Pretti was killed last month in Minneapolis.—
Riley Beggin,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
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Cuba said 32 of its citizens were killed in the attack.—
Sam Meredith,
CNBC,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
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If Kelly vetoed the legislation, a veto override would take the support of two-thirds of lawmakers in each chamber — a threshold the Senate fell well short of on Wednesday.—
Matthew Kelly,
Kansas City Star,
15 Feb. 2026
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But Johnson recalled how in 2024 Newsom vetoed a bill that would have allowed undocumented people to work at public universities, rankling activists.—
Andrew Graham,
Sacbee.com,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Like Social Security and Medicare reform and the massive national debt, which is at $38 trillion and counting because Washington refuses to cut spending, despite record amounts of revenue flooding into the Treasury.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
17 Feb. 2026
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She is known for her perfectly coiffed buns; my baby hairs, on the other hand, refuse to fall in line.—
Conçetta Ciarlo,
Vogue,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In April, Moody’s revised the rating outlook for Thailand to negative from stable, flagging rising political uncertainty and sustained growth weakness.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
1 Sep. 2025
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On the way to scoring a 25-19, 25-9, 25-4 victory, UW was not blocked once, held the Bobcats to negative hitting in each set and in the final set tied a program record for fewest points allowed in a set.—
Mark Stewart,
Journal Sentinel,
2 Dec. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Shoot down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoot%20down. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
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