Meaning & use
shaken down
Last updated
“shaken down” is a form of “shake down”.
Meanings
verbtransitiveinformal
Past participle of 'shake down': to get money from someone by using threats or force.
Grammar: Usually passive: be shaken down for something.
Patterns
- be shaken down for something
- shake someone down
The shop owner was shaken down for protection money by local gang members.
He claimed he had been shaken down by corrupt officials.
Tourists are sometimes shaken down by people pretending to be police.
verbtransitiveinformal
Past participle of 'shake down': to search someone or something thoroughly.
Grammar: Often passive: The room was shaken down by police.
Patterns
- shake down a place
- be shaken down
The suspect was shaken down before being put in the cell.
The police shook down the entire building looking for drugs.
Common combinations
- shaken down for money
- The businessman was shaken down for money by a criminal gang.
- shaken down by police
- The suspect was shaken down by police at the station.
- get shaken down
- Small businesses often get shaken down in areas with organized crime.
Synonyms and how they differ
- extorted
- More formal; 'shaken down' is informal and often implies physical intimidation.
- blackmailed
- Blackmail involves threats to reveal secrets; 'shaken down' usually involves direct threats or force.
Word family
- shake down verb
- Base form of the phrasal verb.
- shakedown noun
- An act of getting money by threats, or a thorough search.
Commonly confused: shaken down or shake up?
shaken down vs shake up
To shake up means to reorganize or upset; to shake down means to extort or search.
Practice
What does 'shaken down' mean in the sentence: 'The vendor was shaken down for cash by local thugs'?
Choose one answer.
In this context, 'shaken down' means to extort money by threats. It does not mean a discount or a physical shake.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shaken down”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.