SHOOT DOWN Synonyms: 136 Similar and Opposite Words

shoot down

verb

Definition of shoot down

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

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

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

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.

Recent Examples of shoot down On July 8, as hostilities ramped up again recently with new Iranian strikes on commercial shipping triggering more US military airstrikes, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have shot down yet another Reaper drone. — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 8 July 2026 Air defenses shot down or jammed 139 drones, and two anti-radar missiles didn’t reach their targets. — ABC News, 8 July 2026 Russia's advanced Ka-52 helicopter was shot down by its own Mobile Fire Unit during an anti-drone mission, highlighting critical coordination failures in Russian air defense. — David Hambling, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026 Compare that with three weeks ago, when Ukraine managed to shoot down 15 of the 19 Russian ballistic missiles lobbed at its capital. — Editorial Board, Washington Post, 7 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for shoot down

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoot down

Verb

For example, 'Blazing Saddles' and 'All in the Family' confronted bigotry by ridiculing prejudice.

— Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 1 July 2026
Multiple hospital stays became fodder for school bullies, who also ridiculed his size.

— Erin Jensen, USA Today, 30 June 2026

Definition of ridicule

Verb

That suit was dismissed after a judge ruled that Lively’s accusations were protected by litigation privilege.

— Jack Dunn, Variety, 9 July 2026
News outlets uncovered years-old comments on Reddit that appeared to endorse political violence, dismiss rape in the military, criticize rural Americans and use anti-gay slurs.

— Kimberlee Kruesi, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026

Definition of dismiss

Verb

Four fisher people from Indonesia’s Pari Island filed a legal complaint in 2023 against the Swiss construction company Holcim, which refutes their assertion that its climate change-causing emissions threaten their homes and livelihoods.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 July 2026
Wainger also refuted the assertion that Pennel had expected to be arrested.

— Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 1 July 2026

Definition of refute

Verb

The Belgian team’s official X account celebrated the team’s win with a pair of mocking posts.

— Siladitya Ray, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
More than 200 people were arrested in protest marches and anti-terror raids, including academics, lawyers, and journalists; a comedian who mocked President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was held at the airport.

— Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 7 July 2026

Definition of mock

Verb

Massive explosions lit up the night sky as ballistic missiles and drones hammered parts of the city, killing at least 14 people in the city and three others in the surrounding region, with dozens more wounded, city officials said.

— Helen Regan, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
Alicent and Helaena will be held prisoner until Aemond is found and killed.

— Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 6 July 2026

Definition of kill

Verb

But vetoing the bill could be politically damaging for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections, with the rising cost of living and housing on the top of voters' minds.

— Joey Garrison, USA Today, 10 July 2026
At midnight the housing bill, hailed as the most substantial legislation on housing in decades, will become law, unless Trump reverses course and signs it sooner or vetoes it.

— Jack Harvel July 10, Kansas City Star, 10 July 2026

Definition of veto

Verb

Vehicle stops can be inherently fraught and unpredictable, with the person behind the wheel in control of thousands of pounds of steel that can pose great risk should a driver refuse to comply or simply panic and flee.

— Caroll Alvarado, CNN Money, 14 July 2026
There was more talk of hitting a provisional, but Spieth refused.

— Brody Miller, New York Times, 14 July 2026

Definition of refuse

Verb

But bad news continued as a leading ratings agency slashed its outlook for BMW to negative from stable, as analysts wondered if the German manufacturing base might be under threat.

— Neil Winton, Forbes.com, 20 June 2026
The move is part of Moody’s broader revision of its outlook for private credit investment vehicles to negative.

— Sharon Klyne, Bloomberg, 8 Apr. 2026

Definition of negative

Browse Nearby Words

shoot at

shoot down

shooter

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Style

“Shoot down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoot%20down. Accessed 15 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of shoot down

verb

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