How to Use shakedown in a Sentence

shakedown

1 of 2 noun
  • He was the victim of a shakedown by a street gang.
  • They're putting the system through a shakedown.
  • The guards conducted a shakedown of the prisoners' cells to look for weapons.
  • The rest of us call it a shakedown.
    — James Dale, Time, 26 Mar. 2026
  • It is called a shakedown, and there is no requirement to play nice.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 14 Aug. 2021
  • But the opacity of the process has led others to call it a shakedown.
    — Ben Hubbard, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2018
  • Our shakedown cruise begins the day after the final bell of the school year rings.
    — Susan Vollenweider, kansascity.com, 6 June 2017
  • The shakedown test next week is a critical moment for the grid.
    — Madeline Coleman, New York Times, 23 Jan. 2026
  • The fridge and pantry may be overflowing and need a shakedown to toss what has expired.
    — Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 20 Jan. 2025
  • One team that won’t be doing shakedown sessions is Williams.
    — Maury Brown, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
  • America's neighbors to the north just got an on-the-ice shakedown.
    — PEOPLE.com, 12 Feb. 2022
  • Perceptions, though, can be tough to shake during the pre-draft shakedown.
    — Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY, 30 Apr. 2023
  • But reps for the billionaire media mogul say the case is nothing but a shakedown.
    — Karu F. Daniels, New York Daily News, 17 June 2025
  • Edward Burke to only two years in prison for a series of shakedowns.
    — Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, 12 June 2025
  • Their newsprint cameo upped the ante; the shakedowns intensified.
    — Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 5 June 2023
  • The first step in coming to grips with this distinguished group was a thorough shakedown at the test track.
    — Rich Ceppos, Car and Driver, 12 Apr. 2023
  • Those released agreed to sign over some of their assets, giving the crackdown the feel of a shakedown.
    — Jon Gambrell, Star Tribune, 31 Aug. 2020
  • His shakedown cruise was from the mainland to Sardinia, with a five-person crew aboard.
    — Tonya Russell, Robb Report, 23 Sep. 2024
  • Forcing you to pay again at the counter, with your flight minutes from departure, feels like a shakedown.
    — Christopher Elliott, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
  • Check out the video premiere of Kreutzmann's shakedown below.
    — Joe Lynch, Billboard, 30 Oct. 2019
  • Next will be the shakedown of ticketholders, in the form of PSLs.
    — Paul Daugherty, The Enquirer, 30 Mar. 2022
  • The custom rig even underwent a five-month shakedown test in the Arctic.
    — Brendan McAleer, Car and Driver, 5 May 2023
  • Teams will often use one of these days to complete a shakedown with their new car before the start of pre-season testing.
    — Luke Smith, The Athletic, 3 Jan. 2025
  • This is a third-world country shakedown, all because someone who talks for a living said something stupid.
    — Jesse Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
  • And more cuts, and possible shakedowns are likely coming.
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 1 Mar. 2026
  • And it cannot be used as a vehicle to spread false and malicious lies, in furtherance of a shakedown.
    — Meredith Woerner, Variety, 7 Mar. 2024
  • Cloudflare rejects this view, and instead likens Blackbird to a drive-by shakedown scheme.
    — Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2017
  • Her entire outfit is well put together–but what happens in the scene is a verbal shakedown.
    — Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 19 Mar. 2024
  • Large area rugs and runners should be vacuumed at least once a week and then taken outside for a good shakedown once every three to six months.
    — NBC News, 22 Feb. 2020
  • The team will have no private shakedown; its title-defending car’s first laps will be in front of the competition.
    — Luke Smith, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026

shake down

2 of 2 verb
  • Arkansas is going to miss out on recruits if things shake down that way.
    — Eric Bolin, ajc, 15 Nov. 2017
  • Of the 128, many were shaken down by earthquakes; many now are closed.
    — Frances Mayes, National Geographic, 11 July 2019
  • Invert plate and mold together and shake down sharply to release cream.
    — Woman's Day, 1 Feb. 2012
  • Gusts of up to 35 mph, which can shake down flammable dry pine needles, are expected.
    — Mallory Moench, San Francisco Chronicle, 26 Sep. 2021
  • Ex-Miami cop pleads guilty to shaking down dealers for coke and cash.
    — Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 2 July 2024
  • Cipriani followed this script in his effort to shake down Jeff Shell.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026
  • Law firms are shaken down into submission.
    — Christopher Bouzy, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
  • This brainstorm is aimed at shaking down travel booking platforms.
    — Susan Shelley, Daily News, 13 May 2026
  • One case stems from claims that Netanyahu and his wife shook down rich acquaintances for luxury gifts.
    — Ed Kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, 13 Feb. 2018
  • Barzani said the militants are living off the land, shaking down the local villagers for food and money.
    — Washington Post, 24 Dec. 2019
  • Democrats say the call shows Trump trying to shake down a foreign leader for political gain.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Sep. 2019
  • Mr Sinik decided who got killed in Medan and who should merely be shaken down for money.
    — The Economist, 14 Nov. 2019
  • Companies such as Acacia Mining have been shaken down for huge tax bills.
    — The Economist, 1 Aug. 2019
  • This is just yet another clunky attempt by MLB to shake down a city, any city, for a ballpark.
    — Joe Sheehan, SI.com, 2 July 2019
  • The big takeaway, though, is that an intense fan campaign amplified by fake accounts helped shake down a major film studio.
    — Justine Browning, EW.com, 19 July 2022
  • Investors took fright at the prospect that their business partners might suddenly disappear or be shaken down.
    — Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2023
  • Some prisoners in states with the most seizures have used phones to shake down families of fellow inmates threatened with injury or death.
    — Matt Riley, NBC News, 30 Sep. 2017
  • The Curiosity rover is still going through its shake down phase, using new equipment and making sure all is well.
    — Phil Plait, Discover Magazine, 28 Aug. 2012
  • The government said the men used the botnet to shake down victims and to lease its arsenal out to other attackers.
    — Robert McMillan, WSJ, 13 Dec. 2017
  • Edward Burke, who went to prison last month for shaking down business owners and developers.
    — Megan Crepeau, Chicago Tribune, 6 Oct. 2024
  • And soon the 111-year-old ballpark was rumbling in a way David Ortiz used to shake down the thunder.
    — Kevin Paul Dupont, BostonGlobe.com, 2 Jan. 2023
  • The nurses and EMTs who shake down hospitals are really shaking down all of us.
    — Ryan Ellis, National Review, 6 Mar. 2022
  • For a week, the Car and Driver staff left the office to shake down the vehicles on our 10Best loop.
    — Car and Driver, 17 Jan. 2023
  • On two occasions, Henríquez said, Cindy had been robbed by gang members who boarded her bus and shook down the passengers.
    — Joshua Partlow, Washington Post, 21 June 2018
  • As soon as Masa kisses his son good-bye, a man Masa has evidently come to shake down for money spots him from across the courtyard and flees.
    — Chris Klimek, Vulture, 24 July 2024
  • This, too, was a lawless place, run by local crime bosses who tried to shake down the American ambassador and everyone else.
    — Washington Post, 11 Mar. 2022
  • As recently as two years ago, one Arthur Avenue restaurateur went to prison for shaking down gamblers who owed him money.
    — Helene Stapinski, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2020
  • By this point, the world has seen a few large-scale meltdowns stem from ransomware-style attacks, where hacker groups encrypt sensitive files and shake down the owners for money.
    — Brian Barrett, Wired, 1 Aug. 2020
  • Later, Tom pours vodka into a Phillies cup and watches birds flutter by at night while Robbie gets his guns ready and shakes down a trap house.
    — Grace Byron, Vulture, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Davis and his sales force soon will begin shaking down Raiders fans to buy tickets and seat licenses in the new stadium/casino in Vegas.
    — Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle, 7 Jan. 2018

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shakedown.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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