shakedown
Americannoun
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extortion, as by blackmail or threats of violence.
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a thorough search.
a shakedown of prison cells to uncover hidden drugs.
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a bed, as of straw or blankets, spread on the floor.
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any makeshift bed.
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the act or process of shaking down.
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Also called shakedown flight. Also called shakedown cruise,. a cruise or flight intended to prepare a new vessel or aircraft for regular service by accustoming the crew to its features and peculiarities, breaking in and adjusting machinery, etc.
Etymology
Origin of shakedown
First recorded in 1490–1500; noun, adj. use of verb phrase shake down
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Every lease I’ve ever signed felt like a shakedown.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
The campus owner denied the charge, blaming feral cats, and called it a shakedown attempt.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
Williams driver Alexander Albon fears missing the Barcelona shakedown last month has left his team clawing to make up lost ground to its main rivals in the build-up on the new Formula One season.
From Barron's ● Feb. 19, 2026
One major question is to what extent China sees visits by the likes of Starmer as part of a bigger geopolitical shakedown?
From BBC ● Jan. 28, 2026
Lawrence could afford to scoff at suggestions that the cyclotron was still in its shakedown stage.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
