as in to quell
to put a stop to (something) by the use of force
public protests against the dictatorial government were always promptly slapped down
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Recent Examples of slap down
Nationally, Americans are increasingly pulling money from home equity lines of credit, slapping down credit cards or turning to buy now, pay later services.
—
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2025
He may get slapped down here and there by a court, but the message has already been received and continues to be received: Be careful.
—Rebecca Beitsch, The Hill, 15 Apr. 2025
The arrogant anti-union stance did not start with the current CEO; even the legendary Studs Terkel was slapped down by WFMT management for his earlier support of an effort to unionize in 1990.
—Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2025
But as technology became more sophisticated, Google started slapping down these article farms in search results.
—Allbusiness, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for slap down
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2025
He may get slapped down here and there by a court, but the message has already been received and continues to be received: Be careful.
—Rebecca Beitsch, The Hill, 15 Apr. 2025
The arrogant anti-union stance did not start with the current CEO; even the legendary Studs Terkel was slapped down by WFMT management for his earlier support of an effort to unionize in 1990.
—Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2025
But as technology became more sophisticated, Google started slapping down these article farms in search results.
—Allbusiness, Forbes, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for slap down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slap down
Verb
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But the comeback attempts staged by the visitors were repeatedly quelled by one of their greatest strengths.—
Bobby Krivitsky,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
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In that case, Israeli soldiers fired live rounds into the air to disperse crowds, with the GHF seeking to quell concerns over its rocky first week of operations in a news release Wednesday.—
Chantal Da Silva,
NBC news,
29 May 2025
Verb
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Eight engines, three water tenders, two dozers and one hand crew are working to suppress the fire.—
CA WILDFIRE BOT,
Sacbee.com,
26 May 2025
-
And in 1955, the McGee Fire burned through much of Converse Basin, consuming second-growth sequoias and demonstrating the dangers of suppressing all fires.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
Verb
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One of the suspects had to be subdued with a stun gun.—
Jim Woods,
Chicago Tribune,
30 May 2025
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Investment spending picked up around 2016 but hit a wall with Covid, and has been subdued since.—
William Dunkelberg,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Verb
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Hartig snatched up the reins, putting down the rifle.—
Louise Erdrich,
New Yorker,
25 May 2025
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Chilling at the beach The sand around the Lake Worth Beach Pier (more formally, the William O. Lockhart Municipal Pier) has always been a popular place to fish, surf or put down a blanket to chill by the water, with plenty of local dining and shopping options.—
Ben Crandell,
Sun Sentinel,
23 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Slap down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slap%20down. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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