How to Use rough in a Sentence

rough

1 of 4 adjective

• He trimmed the rough edge of the paper.
• They've hit a few rough spots in their marriage.
• We were a bit shaken from the plane's rough landing.
• Despite a rough start, the team won more games this season than last.
• We traveled over rough dirt roads.
• They hiked through rough terrain.
• He went through a rough patch after his divorce.
• Life is rougher than prison life.
  — Christina Dugan Ramirez, FOXNews.com, 1 Sep. 2025
• Life is rougher than prison life.
  — Christina Dugan Ramirez, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2025
• But bonds have had some rough years.
  — Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 16 May 2026
• Caglianone got off to a rough start.
  — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 7 Feb. 2026
• There could be some rough years ahead.
  — Alan Gionet, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
• Just plan for a few rough days first.
  — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 11 June 2026
• Just plan for a few rough days first.
  — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 13 June 2026
• The dough should look rough, not smooth.
  — Monti Carlo, AJC.com, 27 Feb. 2026
• But yeah, that was a rough day for me.
  — Lori A Bashian , Larry Fink, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2025
• Does that feel okay, is the salt too rough?
  — Jasmin 'iolani Hakes, Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
• It’s been rough so far this year, though.
  — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
• And those low points, quite frankly, were rough.
  — Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 11 Jan. 2026
• Drake Maye had a rough first half.
  — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
• Well, what’s in front of us is rough gas prices.
  — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 10 Mar. 2026
• Kim’s path to those Olympics was rough.
  — Ryan Brennan, Charlotte Observer, 20 Feb. 2026
• Snell's Game 1 start was rough.
  — Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
• Yet, Massey got off to a rough start.
  — Kansas City Star, 18 Sep. 2025
• Even when the waves are small, the ocean here can still be rough.
  — Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 7 June 2026
• Two weeks later rough pipe work goes in.
  — Marni Jameson, Arkansas Online, 10 Apr. 2026
• It’s been a rough couple of weeks.
  — Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 20 May 2026
• And before that day gets rougher.
  — Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 Mar. 2026
• Nike shares are having a rough stretch.
  — Jeff Marks, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2025
• But there were still some rough patches.
  — Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Mar. 2026

rough

2 of 4 adverb

• He plays rough with the dog.
• The engine is running a little rough.
• Life has been treating her pretty rough.
• The top is asymmetric and rough-edged, not to mention rent down the center.
  — Maile Pingel, WSJ, 28 Sep. 2022
• The planters are pockmarked and rough-cut; etched and grooved to mimic oyster reefs and mangrove roots.
  — Nathan Rott, NPR, 17 Mar. 2026
• The game is a huge upgrade from the original’s rough-looking graphics.
  — Washington Post, 24 May 2021
• West’s music was sludgy and rough-edged, with growly vocals and squealing guitar solos.
  — al, 24 Dec. 2020
• Soon after, the movie's rather rough-looking cast of characters is all introduced.
  — Abbey White, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Aug. 2020
• Simply twist the rough-dry tool attachment to activate the flyaway mode to smooth hair for a sleek finish.
  — Katie Intner, Harper's BAZAAR, 21 June 2022
• Walls and decorative transom windows above doors were covered in rough-cut plywood.
  — oregonlive, 1 June 2020
• Centineo plays Owen with a similar off-kilter, rough-around-the-edges appeal.
  — Nojan Aminosharei, Men's Health, 21 Dec. 2022
• Shelves above each bed are made from rough-cut and original two-by-fours repurposed when these apartments were remodeled last winter and spring.
  — Dina Mishev, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2019
• By answering the conjecture, the coauthors of the new work have placed a rough-cut restriction on the spaces in which higher-rank lattices can act.
  — Quanta Magazine, 23 Oct. 2018
• Hotel staff stayed on while the country mostly shut down, collaborating with rough-sleeping charities round the clock.
  — Shafi Musaddique, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Dec. 2021
• Takkenberg, who retains the rough-around-the-edges demeanor of an ex-cop, joked that van Ruitenbeek would probably excel despite never having played.
  — Renee Dudley, ProPublica, 7 Sep. 2022
• Corabi had the album’s rough-hewn artwork patterned after the essential Aerosmith concert album.
  — Matt Wake | [email protected], al, 5 Oct. 2022
• Dyson advises you rough dry until your hair is damp to touch before swapping out the attachment for a brush or curling barrel — these other attachments will finish drying your damp strands.
  — Nicole Saunders, NBC News, 13 Apr. 2021
• Thousands of migrants are sleeping rough on the streets and the parks after trying to cross the border into Croatia but are being pushed back into Bosnia, aid groups say.
  — Washington Post, 13 June 2019
• At first, her encounters with De Casta’s Chief, a rough-talking teenage parking attendant, only reinforce her frosty disdain.
  — Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Jan. 2022
• Playing on a field left rough and rutted by a weekend music event, Vancouver broke in front in the 15th minute on a counter-attack goal from Dájome, his 10th of the season.
  — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2021
• Alex Borstein, who plays Susie Myerson, Midge’s rough-around-the-edges manager, also saw filming as a brief escape from the anxieties of the pandemic.
  — Meg Donohue, Town & Country, 25 Feb. 2022
• An edger sander is your best bet for rough-sanding tight spots (like corners) and smaller spaces (like a closet), while a random orbital sander is recommended for non-professionals tackling the refinishing of a larger space on their own.
  — Sarah Baird, Good Housekeeping, 14 Sep. 2020
• In the meantime, though, a new character is introduced, a rough-looking butcher with a motorbike and sidecar whose presence Andor’s mother seems to resent and accept in bafflingly equal measures.
  — Damon Wise, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2025
• His languid acerbic wit and genteel sophistication are the perfect foil to Carell's tightly wound, rough-around-the-edges, everything-by-the-book general, who feels deeply but keeps those feelings bottled up, as a good soldier should.
  — Ars Staff, Ars Technica, 29 May 2020
• Nevertheless, Mitch and Mike McLusky enjoy great respect in their working-class town and are definitely serving a need, as evidenced by the large (and rough-looking) crowd that fills their office waiting room.
  — Lynette Rice, EW.com, 14 Nov. 2021
• In 2015 Lebedev and Johnson slept rough on the streets together to raise awareness for one of his papers’ charity appeals, which have raised millions for causes including elephants and homeless veterans.
  — Simon Usborne, Town & Country, 21 Feb. 2021
• But as Duterte’s father, Vicente, had increasingly gravitated toward Malacañang, his son hung out with the family bodyguards—and crafted the persona of a rough-talking bugoy, or hoodlum, in his native Bisayan tongue.
  — Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026

rough

3 of 4 noun

• He showed me a few roughs of the new building.
• He hit his drive into the rough.
• Fairway grass can feel long at times and their rough is, well, rough.
  — Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 9 July 2026
• His lob wedge from a fluffy lie in the rough came out soft, short and in a bunker.
  — Doug Ferguson, The Seattle Times, 31 Mar. 2019
• Woods hit eight drives into the left rough and four into the right rough.
  — Randy Youngman, New York Times, 27 Jan. 2018
• Ended up being in the rough there and not making birdie there.
  — Ben Steele, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 14 June 2021
• So can cutting back on roughs and non-playing areas.
  — Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 10 Feb. 2026
• Garcia drove into the right rough on the par-5 first hole and bogeyed.
  — Dallas News, 30 May 2021
• Smith went from the right rough on the opening hole to a back bunker and missed a 12-foot par putt.
  — Dallas News, 7 Jan. 2022
• That’s where a lot of those guys that shine as diamonds in the rough really come through.
  — Mike Jones, USA TODAY, 15 Aug. 2020
• Koepka mis-hit a ball out of the green-high rough on 18 into a bunker right in front of him.
  — Bryce Miller Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 June 2021
• Woods was busy putting his tee shot in the right rough then being too aggressive with his approach.
  — Michael Rosenberg, SI.com, 14 June 2018
• The thick rye rough — which Woods hasn’t played out of in 12 months — didn’t cause many problems.
  — Steve Dimeglio, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2018
• Champ managed to chip out onto the primary rough, then scoot up the fairway.
  — BostonGlobe.com, 26 July 2021
• Online reviews praise the course’s mature trees, tricky roughs, and ponds and streams that serve as water hazards.
  — Will Weissert, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
• Cole getting a huge break after his ball somehow bounced through the left rough before settling on the edge of the short grass.
  — CBS News, 31 May 2026
• Playing the sixth hole, Thomas’ tee shot landed in the right rough, where some tree branches blocked his path to the green.
  — John Davis, azcentral, 31 Jan. 2020
• Woods flew his tee shot past the green and into a pit of rough, reaching the green in three before a two-putt for double bogey.
  — The Si Staff, SI.com, 13 June 2019
• Drama on 17 as his drive caught the right rough, but McIlroy carved it out onto the green.
  — Rob Hodgetts, CNN, 19 July 2019
• Once a year, golfers should be pushed to their limits in brutal conditions — yes, even on bone-dry greens, in crazy wind and with super-high roughs.
  — Charles Curtis, For The Win, 18 June 2018
• On Thursday, after a wayward drive landed in the left rough on the par-4 eighth hole, Rahm’s mood soured.
  — Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025
• The course features narrow fairways and penal rough, as well as green complexes that are guarded by bunkers aplenty and dense rough.
  — Daniel Rapaport, SI.com, 27 June 2018
• At 18, Piercy drove into the right rough and lashed a rescue-club shot that rolled into the left fairway bunker.
  — San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2019
• Site prep comes next, then permits before any work begins, then electrical rough-in by a licensed electrician.
  — Allison Palmer updated June 25, Charlotte Observer, 25 June 2026
• Site prep comes next, then permits before any work begins, then electrical rough-in by a licensed electrician.
  — Allison Palmer, Charlotte Observer, 24 June 2026
• His opening drive found the primary rough, and his second shot landed in a hazard, forcing a drop, only to find the hazard again.
  — Tim Corlett, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
• Or, use a knotty rough-sawn cedar and dispense with careful adjustments to produce a rustic planter well suited to life outdoors.
  — Thomas Klenck, Popular Mechanics, 20 June 2020
• The woman artist, so often brought in as much as trinket as talent, has been right there, a diamond in the sexist musical rough all along.
  — Danyel Smith, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2023
• Thankfully there is one gem in the intergalactic rough, a character that deserves his own spinoff.
  — Scott Craven, Detroit Free Press, 13 June 2019
• Site prep follows, then permits before any work begins, then electrical rough-in by a licensed electrician.
  — Allison Palmer updated June 25, Sacbee.com, 25 June 2026

rough

4 of 4 verb

• He was called for roughing the kicker.
• Just give them the two plus two for roughing and wash it off.
  — Arpon Basu, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2026
• Use the towel to dry the call quickly and then rough it up again.
  — Jace Bauserman, Outdoor Life, 4 Mar. 2020
• Toss the potatoes around in the pot to rough up their outside layer.
  — Meredith Deeds Special To The Star Tribune, Star Tribune, 24 Mar. 2021
• The cop that roughed him up doesn't have the temperament for the job.
  — Maggie Angst, The Mercury News, 23 July 2019
• The 25-year-old rookie was roughed up for three runs on three hits and as many walks.
  — Skip Snow, USA TODAY Sportsbook Wire, 14 Sep. 2019
• Zadorov and Kuraly were called for roughing.
  — Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
• There’s a nice bit of acidity here and the tannins will rough up the roof of your mouth.
  — Michael Alberty | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 7 Dec. 2019
• One trick is to take sandpaper to the bottom of your shoes to rough them up for the snow or ice.
  — Joyann King, Harper's BAZAAR, 23 Dec. 2019
• Texas State gets a first down on a roughing the passer penalty.
  — Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 22 Nov. 2025
• But no way was that one roughing the passer against the Broncos.
  — Andy Nesbitt, For The Win, 15 Sep. 2019
• Booker was flagged for roughing the passer.
  — Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 21 Dec. 2025
• And when opponents have tried to rough him up, Poole has ignored them.
  — Mark Medina, The Mercury News, 12 July 2019
• But with Kahani Paradise as your base, there’s no need to rough it.
  — Chris Schalkx, Vogue, 4 Oct. 2023
• The man reportedly tackled the kid and then roughed him up.
  — Frederick Dreier, Outside, 6 Dec. 2025
• The 49ers sacked Mahomes four times and roughed him up a few others.
  — Rachel Bachman, WSJ, 3 Feb. 2020
• Nik Bonitto’s roughing-the-passer call puts them in the red zone.
  — Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 14 Sep. 2025
• Despite the isolated setting, guests don’t go there to rough it.
  — John Wogan, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2020
• There were 34 roughing calls through the first three weeks and 19 in the three weeks since the call.
  — Rob Maaddi, The Seattle Times, 16 Oct. 2018
• You may be convinced that sleeping in the woods means roughing it, but that’s simply no longer true.
  — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2025
• Except roughing the passer was called and the Saints kicked a field goal to tie the game and then won it.
  — Ann Killion, SFChronicle.com, 7 Dec. 2019
• Visiting the Grand Canyon does not have to mean roughing it.
  — The Editors, Outside, 18 Mar. 2026
• Not, of course, without stashing in our purses a little brush to rough our soles and a fork to comb our hair.
  — Betty Fussell, PEOPLE, 1 Dec. 2025
• Again, having been shut out of spring practice, this is our first chance to rough out some answers to those questions.
  — Zach Osterman, The Indianapolis Star, 1 Aug. 2022
• Even for those who aren’t keen to rough it, the wildlife and natural beauty are powerful draws.
  — Robert Annis, Travel + Leisure, 8 Oct. 2023
• Pomeranz, a former Rockie, has had a bad season and was roughed up in his last start.
  — Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 23 June 2019
• McAvoy was called for two minors while Malenstyn was sent off for roughing.
  — Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2026
• With most outfitters, these trips fall between roughing it and glamping.
  — John Briley, Outside, 28 Sep. 2025
• Higuera came through with seven shutout innings while Stanley was roughed up for nine hits and three runs in 4⅔ frames.
  — Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 25 Mar. 2020
• And Jaguars get roughing call on Malcolm Roach for using his body weight.
  — Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 21 Dec. 2025