stare down


Cause someone to waver or give in by or as if by being stared at. For example, Insisting on a better room, he stared down the manager until he got it. This expression alludes to staring at someone without being the first to blink or lower one's gaze. [Mid-1800s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

How to use stare down in a sentence

  • We feel the usual fascination of the ice, and stand and stare down into the dark cold depths.

  • Now, he dared to stare down for the second time, and his heart took a great leap.

    The Guns of Europe | Joseph A. Altsheler
  • Harshaw came out then, and he began to walk the platform, and to stare down the track toward Nampa; so I sat down.

  • As Mary stepped from the tent her eyes fell upon a pair of lifeless eyes that seemed to stare down upon her.

    A Ticket to Adventure | Roy J. Snell