thug
noun
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noun
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adjective
Synonyms for thug
Synonyms
bully, gangbanger, gangsta, gangster, goon, gorilla, hood, hoodlum, hooligan, mobster, mug, plug-ugly, punk, roughneck, rowdy, ruffian, tough, toughie (also toughy), yob [British], yobbo [British]
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Examples of thug in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Michael Cohen is, famously, a lowlife and screwball who’s made his living as an enforcer, liar and thug. — Peggy Noonan, WSJ, "Michael Cohen Makes History," 28 Feb. 2019 Rights activists say Egyptian authorities have a long history of recruiting plainclothes thugs to attack protesters and opposition figures. — Hamza Hendawi, BostonGlobe.com, "Egypt’s opposition says assailants trashed their party," 6 June 2018 Meanwhile, some pro-EU lawmakers have been threatened outside the Palace of Westminster by thugs wearing yellow vests like those of demonstrators in France. — Max Colchester, WSJ, "Brexit Turns U.K. Parliament on Its Head," 14 Jan. 2019 Kennedy was not used to dealing with a thug like Khrushchev. — Eli Stokols, latimes.com, "Summits are tricky: Kennedy, Nixon and Reagan each learned the hard way," 9 June 2018 Or of African-Americans hunkering down in panic and despair, with their neighborhood burning, thugs running wild in the chaos? — John Kass, chicagotribune.com, "Memories of the 1968 King riots, a story Chicago would rather forget," 4 Apr. 2018 Fascist thugs attacking bookshops is the logical conclusion to a political movement that rejects facts and experts. — Constance Grady, Vox, "Being a librarian used to be considered too dangerous a profession for women," 11 Aug. 2018 The only thing these thugs are good at, is destroying lives. — Jean Marbella, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore County police officer's death ignites a racial firestorm," 25 May 2018 But as in the breaking of any mob of cheap thugs, eliciting testimony may have to include plea-bargaining or even granting some individuals immunity. — Kevin Baker, The New Republic, "Why America needs truth and reconciliation after Trump," 17 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'thug.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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23 Mar 2019
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thug
noun
English Language Learners Definition of thug
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