rough up

verb

roughed up; roughing up; roughs up

informal

: to hit and hurt (someone)

The prisoner claimed that he was roughed up by the guards.

Examples of rough up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Marlins roughed up Casey Mize through three innings to take a 5-1 lead, including Otto Lopez's two-run home run, his 11th, in the second. — ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026

Royals right-handed starter Stephen Kolek was roughed up early. — Kansas City Star, 21 June 2026

Use fine-grit sandpaper to lightly rough up slick surfaces so the glue has something to grip, then wipe everything down with an alcohol wipe to remove oils (yes, even on a brand-new book). — Angela Haupt, Time, 19 May 2026

Instead, the Falcons will make trips to Pittsburgh and Green Bay in September before things really get rough up north. — Josh Kendall, New York Times, 15 May 2026

Rhymes for rough up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup