mow down

phrasal verb

mowed down; mowed down or mown down; mowing down; mows down
informal
: to kill or knock down (a person or many people) in a sudden and violent way
The soldiers were mowed down by machine guns.
The car mowed down four pedestrians.

Examples of mow down in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Rodriguez was mowed down around 12:44 a.m. while directing traffic after a performance by Bronx bachata band Aventura. Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 3 Jan. 2025 The suspect mowed down dozens of people over a three-block stretch on the world-famous thoroughfare while firing into the crowd, police said. Leah Sarnoff, ABC News, 2 Jan. 2025 That’s what authorities say occurred just after 3 a.m. Wednesday, when a Texas man inspired by the Islamic State group drove a pickup truck onto a sidewalk filled with people on Bourbon Street, mowing down pedestrians before opening fire on police, wounding two officers and dying in the shootout. Laura Strickler, NBC News, 2 Jan. 2025 The 2014 team, led by Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, mowed down most of the teams on its schedule but got bludgeoned by Ezekiel Elliott and Ohio State in the first College Football Playoff national championship game. Austin Meek, The Athletic, 26 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for mow down 

Dictionary Entries Near mow down

Cite this Entry

“Mow down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mow%20down. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!