as in to scold
to criticize (someone) severely or angrily especially for personal failings
I was called down by my supervisor for not catching the accounting error sooner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of call down
Trail Cams Go To War Trail Cams could be used like the sensors in Igloo White, to call down attacks on logistics vehicles by FPV drones.
—
David Hambling, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
This ranges from being able to call down lightning strikes, to conjuring twisters, to freezing foes solid with sub-zero temperatures.
—Griff Griffin, Newsweek, 9 Jan. 2025
The producers call down to WBZ's Steve Burton, who's working as tonight's sideline reporter.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 11 Aug. 2024
The pilot would locate an enemy position and mark it with small smoke bombs; an artillery spotter could then call down a barrage on the marked location.
—David Hambling, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024
A number of companies are vying to win the business of apartment community companies interested in providing their residents with amenities that might best be called down to earth.
—Jeffrey Steele, Forbes, 2 Oct. 2024
If the alarm rang outside business hours, someone would need to call down a list of seismologists until someone agreed to come in.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 17 Sep. 2024
Dennis called down to a Detroit police officer on the street.
—Jamie L. Lareau, Detroit Free Press, 26 Apr. 2024
There were other questionable calls down the stretch in that one.
—Howard Fendrich, USA TODAY, 6 Feb. 2024
David Hambling, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
This ranges from being able to call down lightning strikes, to conjuring twisters, to freezing foes solid with sub-zero temperatures.
—Griff Griffin, Newsweek, 9 Jan. 2025
The producers call down to WBZ's Steve Burton, who's working as tonight's sideline reporter.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 11 Aug. 2024
The pilot would locate an enemy position and mark it with small smoke bombs; an artillery spotter could then call down a barrage on the marked location.
—David Hambling, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024
A number of companies are vying to win the business of apartment community companies interested in providing their residents with amenities that might best be called down to earth.
—Jeffrey Steele, Forbes, 2 Oct. 2024
If the alarm rang outside business hours, someone would need to call down a list of seismologists until someone agreed to come in.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 17 Sep. 2024
Dennis called down to a Detroit police officer on the street.
—Jamie L. Lareau, Detroit Free Press, 26 Apr. 2024
There were other questionable calls down the stretch in that one.
—Howard Fendrich, USA TODAY, 6 Feb. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for call down
Verb
-
What leads children to be scolded for poor behavior can snowball into difficulties keeping a job, maintaining healthy relationships, and even staying out of prison.—
Yasmin Tayag,
The Atlantic,
3 Feb. 2025
-
And despite being scolded by school administrators for it and having to file a lawsuit, more and more students began to show up each week wearing the shirts, as the school had to alter its dress code and start placing students in detention for wearing them.—
Jackson Thompson,
Fox News,
31 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Schachner playfully lectures Smooth for pulling the blue bandanna off his Team Fluff teammate, Alice.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA TODAY,
10 Feb. 2025
-
The long-standing lament that Latin American conservatives, centrists, and leftists share is that whereas the United States comes to the region to punish and lecture, China comes to trade.—
Will Freeman,
The Atlantic,
29 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Witnesses told investigators that Sanchez had planned to reprimand Jimenez for his allegedly poor work ethic and other faults, according to court filings.—
Gary Klien,
The Mercury News,
21 Jan. 2025
-
In 2011, in the southern city of Daraa, a group of teen-age boys were caught painting anti-government graffiti on a wall, and, rather than simply reprimand them, secret police tortured them to death.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
The New Yorker,
27 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
In the wake of the extreme wildfires that destroyed more than 12,000 homes and buildings, some are blaming the destruction squarely on that.—
Lauren Sommer,
NPR,
11 Feb. 2025
-
After the 2023 Supreme Court ruling, which deemed affirmative action in university admissions unconstitutional, attacks on DEI proliferated, and the term became a right-wing bogeyman blamed for almost anything that goes wrong in any workplace.—
Kizzy Cox,
Essence,
11 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Trump used the signing ceremony as an opportunity to criticize Canada, with continuing negotiations between him and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau amid threats of 25% tariffs from both sides.—
Naomi Lim,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
3 Feb. 2025
-
Legislative Democrats continue to criticize Lee's proposal for its lack of accountability measures, among other aspects.—
Vivian Jones,
The Tennessean,
3 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Elsa Hosk dressed down a blazer with denim at Valentino‘s spring 2025 couture fashion show in Paris on Wednesday.—
Hannah Malach,
WWD,
29 Jan. 2025
-
There were few in the sharply dressed and cavernous Palm Springs Convention Center who dressed down.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
4 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near call down
Cite this Entry
“Call down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/call%20down. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share