crack down

crack down

1. verb To address or control something more strictly than in the past. After years of leniency, the school is finally cracking down on plagiarism.

2. noun A period of stricter control of something. When used as a noun, the phrase is usually written as one word. After years of leniency, there's finally been a crackdown on plagiarism at the school.

See also: crack, down

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

crack down (on someone or something)

to put limits on someone or something; to become strict about enforcing rules about someone or something. The police cracked down on the street gangs. They cracked down once last year too.

See also: crack, down

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

crack down

Act more forcefully to regulate, repress, or restrain. For example, The police cracked down on speeding. [1930s]

See also: crack, down

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

crack down

v.

1. To increase the intensity or severity involved in preventing or regulating something: The police are cracking down on drunk driving and issuing stiffer penalties. The police cracked down after the murder last week.

2. To increase the intensity or severity involved in punishing or repressing someone: The government has cracked down on protesters.

See also: crack, down

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs. Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.