cracked down; cracking down; cracks down
: to take positive regulatory or disciplinary action
Examples of crackdown in a Sentence
Noun
Companies that pollute are the target of a new crackdown.
Verb
a repressive government that cracked down on political demonstrations
Recent Examples on the Web
Alex Sundby, CBS News, 7 Apr. 2025
Hopefully, a crackdown on those who fail to obey the law or engage in unsafe practices behind the wheel will bring them to their senses.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 7 Apr. 2025
German Lopez, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
Thereafter, the group retreated to its strongholds in the mountain regions inside Puntland amid pressure from both the regional government and al-Shabab, which has cracked down on Islamic State supporters in its ranks.
—Ido Levy, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for crackdown
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images The family's detainment and subsequent reaction came as the Trump administration carries out its controversial immigration crackdown throughout the country.
—Verb
The Trump administration is expected to reverse several Biden-era gun control measures, including an effort to crack down on some gun dealers who skip background checks.
—Cite this Entry
“Crackdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crackdown. Accessed 12 Apr. 2025.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share