Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

slap down

British  

verb

  1. informal (tr, adverb) to rebuke sharply, as for impertinence

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
slap down Idioms  

  1. Restrain or correct emphatically, as in They thought he was getting far too arrogant and needed to be slapped down. This idiom, which literally means “inflict a physical blow,” began to be used figuratively in the first half of the 1900s.

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.

Asia was mixed, with the Supreme Court's decision last Friday to slap down many of US President Donald Trump's tariffs seen largely benefiting regional economies.

From Barron's • Feb. 27, 2026

He must know that those who meet him use these meetings to slap down accusations of antisemitism.

From Slate • Nov. 28, 2023

"What you want for a quizmaster are actual cards, which you can deploy to good effect when exasperated. You can't slap down a screen. It also means there's less eye contact with the teams."

From BBC • Jul. 18, 2023

Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg predicted that the earlier slap down of her rulings by an appeals court could make Cannon think twice about potentially controversial rulings.

From Salon • Jun. 13, 2023

His shoes slap down on the old porch planks.

From "The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle" by Leslie Connor

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.