Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

shakedown

/ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.65 in modern English

Syllables
shake-down
IPA
/ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/
20
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
2
Syllables
9
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Extortion, especially through blackmail

Slang

noun

A thorough search; a frisk

Slang

noun

A trial or test period, especially of a ship or aircraft.

noun

An improvised bed.

adj

That tests the performance of a ship or aircraft.

Example Sentences

Etymology

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/
  • British English: /ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce shakedown?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/.
What does shakedown mean?
Extortion, especially through blackmail
Where does shakedown come from?
Deverbal from shake down. An improvised bed would originally have been made by shaking down straw.

How to pronounce shakedown

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “shakedown”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “shakedown”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “shakedown” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.