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
The man used a firearm to shoot down a police drone deployed during the standoff, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
—
Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2025
However, when Horowitz suggested the idea of Fishburne potentially joining the Star Wars universe, the actor shot down the idea faster than Han Solo shot Greedo.
—Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
The discussion comes weeks after both Michelle and Barack Obama had to shoot down divorce rumors.
—Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 11 Oct. 2025
Germany will grant police the power to shoot down rogue drones like those that have disrupted airports across Europe and that some European leaders have attributed to a hybrid war being waged by Russia.
—Reuters, NBC news, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shoot down
Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2025
However, when Horowitz suggested the idea of Fishburne potentially joining the Star Wars universe, the actor shot down the idea faster than Han Solo shot Greedo.
—Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
The discussion comes weeks after both Michelle and Barack Obama had to shoot down divorce rumors.
—Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 11 Oct. 2025
Germany will grant police the power to shoot down rogue drones like those that have disrupted airports across Europe and that some European leaders have attributed to a hybrid war being waged by Russia.
—Reuters, NBC news, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shoot down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoot down
Verb
-
When he wasn’t being ridiculed and ignored, Tupac was writing.—
Jeff Pearlman,
Rolling Stone,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Altman served up an easy target for his critics to ridicule.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Biden administration dismissed the lawsuit, and prosecutors dropped a grand jury investigation the following year.—
NPR,
NPR,
17 Oct. 2025
-
The revelation immediately erupted into a political crisis, with the head of prisons dismissed and Guatemalans threatening to protest.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The couple has publicly refuted those claims, affirming the authenticity of their partnership.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Oct. 2025
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Michaels took to her Instagram days after the release of Fit for TV to post a series of screenshots of text chains, email threads, and other pieces of documentation refuting or otherwise complicating each claim leveled at her.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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One of the challenges for me as biographer was not to trivalize this obsession, not to mock it in any way.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Their mother began a relationship with a swaggering alcoholic, their future stepfather, who mocked Scott for being soft.—
Eren Orbey,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Four people were killed and another four were injured in two head-on collisions on Arkansas roads Friday and Saturday, according to preliminary police reports.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
19 Oct. 2025
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Listeria infects 1,250 people in the United States each year, according to the CDC, and kills about 172.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Meanwhile, China just tightened its grip on rare earth exports, giving Beijing the power to potentially veto European defence production.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
16 Oct. 2025
-
Trump invited, and Erdogan vetoed.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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During one heated exchange, immigration agents who did not want to be captured on body camera footage refused to invite FBI agents along for an arrest operation, one of the sources said.—
Josh Campbell,
CNN Money,
16 Oct. 2025
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According to Film Workers for Palestine, the pledge was inspired by Filmmakers United Against Apartheid, a group founded by high-profile directors such as Jonathan Demme and Martin Scorsese, which demanded that the film industry refuse to distribute work in South Africa.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Oct. 2025
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 Oct. 2025.
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