shake down

shake down
verb
Etymology: shake (I) + down, adverb
1.
a. : to take up temporary quarters

a good plan for me to shake down in New York alone … before you join me — Margaret A. Barnes

b. : to occupy an improvised or hastily prepared bed

had to be content to shake down with blankets in the inn parlor — B.L.K.Henderson

2.
a. : to become accustomed or conditioned especially to new surroundings or new duties

four months … was long enough for a new man to shake down — Edwards Park

b. : to undergo a period of adjustment : settle down

until the whole entertainment business shakes down and new patterns have been established — Publishers' Weekly

3. : to become reduced

the fighting shook down to a straight infantry battle — Newsweek

1. : to obtain money from in a dishonest or illegal manner (as under pretense of official authority or under promise of protection)

impostors … shook down soldiers by pretending to arrest them — Dixon Wecter

2. : to make a thorough search of

decided to shake down the inmates to make sure nothing had been smuggled into the jail — Police Detective

3. : to bring about a reduction of

ordered … to shake down the hundreds of duplicating and overlapping service boards — Time

4. : to test on a shakedown cruise

the work … included training men and shaking down the ships for the Pacific theater — Walter Karig

* * *

become established in a new place or situation; settle down

it was disruptive to the industry as it was shaking down after deregulation

* * *

shake down [phrasal verb]
US informal
1 shake (someone) down or shake down (someone) : to get money from (someone) by using deception or threats

mobsters shaking down store owners for protection

2 shake (someone or something) down or shake down (someone or something) : to search (someone or something) thoroughly

The police shook the car down looking for illegal drugs.

• • •
Main Entry: ↑shake

* * *

ˌshake ˈdown derived
(informal) to become familiar with a new situation and begin to work well in it

•

The new recruits are shaking down well.

Main entry: ↑shakederived

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • shake-down — shake down1 or shake|down1 «SHAYK DOWN», noun, adjective. –n. 1. Informal. a bringing into proper condition or working order, as by use or practice: »The new ocean liner was given a shakedown by a trial voyage. 2. a makeshift bed: »We made a… …   Useful english dictionary

  • shake|down — shake down1 or shake|down1 «SHAYK DOWN», noun, adjective. –n. 1. Informal. a bringing into proper condition or working order, as by use or practice: »The new ocean liner was given a shakedown by a trial voyage. 2. a makeshift bed: »We made a… …   Useful english dictionary

  • shake down — ► shake down 1) settle down. 2) N. Amer. informal extort money from. Main Entry: ↑shake …   English terms dictionary

  • shake down — (someone) to get money from someone by using threats. His crimes ranged from murder to shaking down gamblers. He claimed that a government official shook his company down for $10,000 in campaign contributions …   New idioms dictionary

  • Shake down — Unter einem so genannten Shake down versteht man im Rallyesport das Abfahren von bestimmten, zuvor von der Rallyeleitung festgelegten, Wertungsprüfungen vor dem Start der eigentlichen Rallye. Ein Shake down ist in etwa mit dem Warm up vor einem… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • shake down — UK US shake down Phrasal Verb with shake({{}}/ʃeɪk/ verb [T] ► [I] if a new system or situation shakes down, it begins to work normally: »The new IT network is still causing delays but is expected to shake down by year end …   Financial and business terms

  • shake down — phrasal verb Word forms shake down : present tense I/you/we/they shake down he/she/it shakes down present participle shaking down past tense shook down past participle shaken down 1) [intransitive] British informal to sleep somewhere such as on… …   English dictionary

  • shake down — verb a) To cause something to fall by shaking it, or something it is attached down. shake down apples from an apple tree. b) To shake someone so money falls from their pockets …   Wiktionary

  • shake down — v. (D; tr.) to shake down from (to shake fruit down from a tree) …   Combinatory dictionary

  • shake down — PHRASAL VERB If someone shakes you down, they use threats or search you physically in order to obtain something from you. [AM] [V P n (not pron)] He ordered the dismantling of police checkpoints on highways, which were being used to shake down… …   English dictionary

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