1
as in ridicules
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 kills
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 refutes
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 shoots down
Speculation soon followed that this effort was in response to the aforementioned test audience confusion, but Cronin shoots down that notion about the last-minute social media campaign.
—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Apr. 2026
And in the comments of her introductory video, her team shoots down every plausible guess.
—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
16 Oct. 2025
The powerful big tech lobby shoots down any law remotely alludes to testing and regulating AI machines.
—
The Ai Insider,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Aug. 2025
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Apr. 2026
And in the comments of her introductory video, her team shoots down every plausible guess.
—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
16 Oct. 2025
The powerful big tech lobby shoots down any law remotely alludes to testing and regulating AI machines.
—
The Ai Insider,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoots down
Verb
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Though Claudius ridicules Hamlet for his emotional vulnerability, his grief drives him to avenge his father and emerge as a hero.
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Back in their teenage years, Lexi’s older sister Andrea is depicted as a mean girl who ridicules Catherine mercilessly.
Verb
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According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, heatstroke kills around 40 kids in cars every year.
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Aemond kills the old man anyway, and then kills his sons, though not before being stabbed in the back himself.
Verb
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There is extensive evidence — including Slack and WhatsApp messages, company documents, and witness testimony — that unequivocally refutes her claims.
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The woman vehemently refutes those claims to ABC News, and claims Aaron knew about her personal history, including marital status.
Verb
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One of the moments in the musical that caused the most laughter and claps from the audience was the final song, which mocks the idea of using violence as a form of protest rather than joining a movement or focusing on policy.
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The group openly mocks Jesus Christ and many Christian and Catholic traditions.
Verb
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De Borbon dismisses the accusations as coming from a small group of disgruntled owners.
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Bisignano dismisses the criticism.
Verb
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Like many of the people camped outside their families’ homes in Venezuela, Mendoza refuses to believe they are gone until the last moment possible.
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The result is heat that builds, amplifies and refuses to break, often setting records on the way.
Verb
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The housing bill, formally called the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, can still become law if Trump neither signs it nor vetoes it in 10 days, excluding Sundays.
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The bill will become law unless the governor vetoes it.
Verb
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Springtown takes edge in 7-4A race, downs Decatur Springtown got the inside track on the District 7-4A championship after beating Decatur 4-2 in 8 innings on Monday night at Decatur High School.
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Greene downs it, throws the kid his jersey, smiles, and all is right with the world.
Cite this Entry
“Shoots down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoots%20down. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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