as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the loan shark sent a couple of gorillas to "convince" him to pay up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 gorilla
At 69, Fatou has lived far beyond what most gorillas experience.
—
Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 13 Apr. 2026
Accessibility should be seriously taken into account ahead of booking a gorilla track.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Apr. 2026
Primates including gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans are also not allowed as pets.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 7 Apr. 2026
Both gorillas and chimpanzees are endangered, and most gorilla species are critically endangered.
—Tim Dunn, Boston Herald, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for gorilla
Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 13 Apr. 2026
Accessibility should be seriously taken into account ahead of booking a gorilla track.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Apr. 2026
Primates including gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans are also not allowed as pets.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 7 Apr. 2026
Both gorillas and chimpanzees are endangered, and most gorilla species are critically endangered.
—Tim Dunn, Boston Herald, 3 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for gorilla
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gorilla
Noun
-
Pinell’s second film after Kiss and Cry, Shana stars her regular collaborator Éva Huault as a woman in her thirties navigating dead-end jobs, drug deals and an impossible relationship with a toxic thug, Moïse.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the religious gestapo thugs who ran the country were not only committed in the name of Allah to destroying Israel, the Little Satan, and the United States, the Big Satan, but western civilization as well.—
Peter Lucas,
Boston Herald,
13 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Like a cartoon villain, though, Paula kicks up the edge of the carpet, which causes poor Miriam to make a dog’s dinner of afternoon tea.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Nemesis achieves a lot, introducing a dangerous new villain that even the mighty Asgard fear, while ramping up the tension for a suitably dramatic season finale.—
Daryl Baxter,
Space.com,
14 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
An unusual theft at a Pennsylvania Wawa has police going bananas for a pair of potassium bandits.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Set against mountainous landscapes and rural lakes, the story follows a wandering swordsman who is falsely accused of stealing a shipment of gold and must unravel a web of intrigue involving bandits, palace guards and corrupt officials while attempting to clear his name.—
Lin Ying-Hsuan,
Variety,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
That’s before Morgan steals a necklace from a chintzy gift shop run by a Turkish gangster named Yusuf, who proceeds to kidnap the pair, intimidate them at gunpoint, and threaten their family, forcing them to perform an array of odd jobs to make up for the petty theft.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Longtime collaborators Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro reunited for this 2019 gangster epic, about the real-life hitman Frank Sheeran and his experiences working for the Mafia.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The scheme is designed to identify suspected criminals, combat identity fraud, and to police the EU's limit on 90-day stays within a 180-day period, according to the European Commission.—
Emma Clarke,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Rex Heuermann, the man known as the Gilgo Beach killer, admitted to killing eight women over a span of decades, and the FBI is now looking into what motivated the 62-year-old to carry out his crimes to help capture other criminals in the future.—
Matt Lavietes,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Their efforts lead them in the season’s last two episodes to Paris, where Frank was planning to celebrate his 80th birthday with his children — only for him to be gunned down in a hotel lobby by an assassin who had been sent to kill Teddy for a deal gone wrong.—
Max Gao,
Variety,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Neither of these two is necessarily a lip-sync assassin.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
11 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Our Navy, its creation was actually to free international waters from the Barbary pirates.—
NBC news,
NBC news,
12 Apr. 2026
-
This inland route, protected from sea storms and pirates, enabled travelers to journey safely up and down the coast as if on a modern interstate highway.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There was a lot to like under the hood, from strength in its most consequential segment, which houses its investment banking operations, to encouraging scores on key banking metrics (more on those in a moment).—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
13 Apr. 2026
-
Its other features include an adjustable hood and hem and generously sized baffle pockets.—
Eric Twardzik,
Robb Report,
13 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gorilla.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gorilla. Accessed 18 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
