shakedown

shake down

1. verb To blackmail someone for money; to extort someone. A noun or pronoun is often used between "shake" and "down." The assistant has been shaking the governor down ever since he found out that she'd been taking bribes.
2. verb By extension, to ask, pressure, or force someone to pay a sum of money, often an exorbitant or unfair amount. A noun or pronoun is often used between "shake" and "down." I think it's criminal that the IRS gets to shake you down for so much of your hard-earned cash each year. Her private school offers the best education in the state, but they don't hesitate to shake us down for the privilege. Before you know it, the kids will be driving their own cars and shaking you down for money on the weekends.
3. verb To become acclimated, organized, or established (in something or some place new). So, how's your first week in the office been? You shaking down all right? It took us a few weeks to shake down after the move, but we're feeling right at home now.
4. verb To search someone or something thoroughly, especially for weaponry or prohibited substances. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "shake" and "down." The bouncer is shaking down everyone to make sure no one smuggles booze or drugs into the concert. The officer shook me down even though I told him I didn't have a gun on me.
5. noun An instance of blackmail for money or extorsion. As a noun, the phrase is usually written as one word. The FBI captured the shakedown on video and was able to use it at the trial.
6. noun By extension, an instance of asking, pressuring, or forcing someone to pay a sum of money, often an exorbitant or unfair amount. As a noun, the phrase is usually written as one word. It's time for the annual shakedown by the IRS again. Every time I turn around, there's another shakedown at the office for some charity or fundraiser or whatever.
See also: down, shake
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

shake someone down

 
1. to blackmail someone. (Underworld.) Fred was trying to shake Jane down, but she got the cops in on it. The police chief was trying to shake down just about everybody in town.
2. to put pressure on someone to lend one money. We tried to shake down Max for a few hundred, but no deal. If you're trying to shake me down, forget it. I have no cash.
See also: down, shake
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

shake down

1. Extort money from, as in They had quite a racket, shaking down merchants for so-called protection. [Slang; second half of 1800s]
2. Make a thorough search of, as in They shook down all the passengers, looking for drugs. [Slang early 1900s]
3. Subject a new vehicle or machine to a tryout, as in We'll shake down the new model next week.
4. Become acclimated or accustomed, to a new place, job, or the like, as in Is this your first job? You'll soon shake down. [Mid-1800s]
See also: down, shake
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

shake down

v.
1. To extort money from someone: The mob regularly sends thugs to shake down local businesses. The blackmailer shook us down for $1000.
2. To make a thorough search of someone or something: The guards shook down the prisoners' cells for hidden weapons. The airport security guards shook me down.
3. To become acclimated or accustomed, as to a new environment or a new job: We gave the new hire a few weeks to shake down before assigning her to a project.
See also: down, shake
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs.

shakedown

n. an act of extortion. (Underworld.) Mary was giving Bruno the shakedown, so he tried to put her out of the way.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • bring (someone or something) before (someone or something)
  • bear off from (someone or something)
  • be out of (one's) league
  • be out of somebody's league
  • be (not) a patch on
  • accompany (one) on a/(one's) journey
  • accompany on a journey
  • (one) puts (one's) pants on one leg at a time
  • brief (someone) about (someone or something)
  • brief about
References in periodicals archive
He explained the test track is used for shakedowns, filming, experience days, and said "lots of different companies" use the circuit.
Failure to tighten bolt 'most probable cause' of fatal crash of Woking F3 mechanic, inquest hears; The second day of the inquest into the death of JJ Wilson heard evidence from an accident investigator with a specialism in metals and mechanical engineering
Tuesday's shakedown covered three housing units and 159 inmates; this time, a second female inmate was found to have seven small bags containing suspected heroin residue.
Heroin bags prompt 2nd Kane jail shakedown in a month
Formerly the Symco Shakedown, we are a 1964 and older traditional hot rod and custom car and music festival.
Shakedown Traditional Hot Rod and Custom Festival Moving to a New Location
Zerylle said: "A friend of mine on Facebook sent me an invitation to ShakeDown's swing class.
Let's dance!
The Bellingham Pinball Collective also has machines at The Shakedown, McKay's Taphouse and The Swillery Whiskey Bar.
Bellingham Pinball Collective: repair wizards own and maintain local machines: Pinball's popularity is growing in Bellingham and around the world
The song also features the rest of Shakedown band, drummer Medley Shabazz, guitarist Art Vanterpool, bassist Phil Bass, Daron Wright on keyboards, Kengo Yamada and Michael Quigley on saxophone, Brian Varneke on trumpet, and guest background vocalists Dietrice Bolden and Jindai Joseph.
Kwame Binea Shakedown Announce Second Single and Video, "Hang On" Set for June 16th
A bill aimed to curtail public records shakedowns passed favorably out of a Senate committee on February 3.
Bill to curtail public records schemes moves
The paper focuses on the methodology for determining the distribution of the optimal limit bending moment M0 of an elastic-plastic circular plate subjected to variable repeated loading at shakedown. The behaviour of materials is described by an ideal elastic plastic model; a possible unloading phenomenon of a cross section is ignored (variable repeated loading is defined only by its upper and lower bounds).
An improved method for an optimal shakedown design of circular plates/Pagerinta prisitaikanciu apvaliu ploksciu optimalaus projektavimo metodika
LOS ANGELES -- The director of the upcoming ''X-Men'' film has denied allegations contained in a lawsuit that he raped an aspiring actor and model in 1999 and called the claims a shakedown.
'X-Men' director calls sex-abuse suit a shakedown
To design more economical structures subjected to variable as well as repeated loading, the shakedown theory may be applied (Staat, Heitzer 2002; Weichert, Ponter 2009; Atkociunas 2011).
Eurocode stability requirements in optimal shakedown truss design/Optimalios prisitaikancios santvaros projektavimas taikant eurokodo reikalavimus
jawboning: The post-PC polite word for a corporate shakedown, it is a slang term used to describe political strong-arming.
Words at work
One of the dance teachers, Hollie Victoria, is also an international gymnast; is the winner of BBC 1's Strictly Dance Fever and MTV's Wade Robson Shakedown; has worked as a backing dancer, on Broadway; and has lots of experience and knowledge to pass on to students.
Street dance classes drawing in youngsters
AFTER an excellent shakedown stage, Irishman Robert Barrable and Scottish co-driver Stuart Loudon were forced to retire from last week's Rallye Deutschland midway through the first stage proper.
Tunnock's are no fans of German race
Vehicle shakedown testing for the next season, which begins in April 2014, began at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan on Friday.
Lexus to compete in Japan's Super GT Series
Sources close to the 'Rocky' star insist that the settlement was the result of a "shakedown" and that Stallone was a victim of blackmail, the New York Post reported.
Did Sylvester Stallone abuse half-sister for years?