Meaning trap
shut down
close a business or system
To stop operating a business, machine, or system, either temporarily or permanently.
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
To stop operating a business, machine, or system, either temporarily or permanently.
Another meaning of 'shut down' is 'stop talking or reacting emotionally'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
The company had to shut down its factory due to financial problems.
If my favorite local shop shut down, I would miss it a lot because I go there almost every day.
Fix the pattern
One small grammar move makes it sound right.
Not: The power cut shut down it.
Say: The power cut shut it down.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle: 'shut it down', never 'shut down it'.
Which sounds natural?
Tap the one a native speaker would say.
'Shut down' is the everyday verb for closing a business or system; 'ceased its operations' is corporate/legal.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
shut down + thing
- the factory
- the system
- the server
- the business
Don't confuse it
Related
Other meanings and phrases to compare.
- shut down (stop talking or reacting emotionally) — Another meaning of 'shut down' is 'stop talking or reacting emotionally'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.