1
as in idiots
a stupid person
an unfortunate tendency to call those who disagree with him "brainless goons"
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in thugs
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the crime boss threatened to send the goons after him if he squealed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of goons
No more random goons without background checks, and fire all who never should have been hired.
—
Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
Now, fresh reporting by the New York Times documents the wild ride that turned a group of crypto goons into a national laughing stock.
—Joe Wilkins Published Feb 5, Futurism, 5 Feb. 2026
Get your goons out of Minnesota.
—Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 29 Jan. 2026
Senate Democrats should continue to block Homeland Security funding until the goons are gone from Minnesota and Noem is gone from Washington.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 29 Jan. 2026
He’s aided by Jessica Jones, who uses her super strength (and sarcasm) to beat up Kingpin’s goons.
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 27 Jan. 2026
The fear caused by her masked goons and their disregard of due process leaves us citizens afraid to leave their homes.
—Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 22 Jan. 2026
But the sequences featuring Jimmy Crystal and his goons are far more sadistic, and needlessly unpleasant.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 14 Jan. 2026
But when Theo decides to sell to Dwight instead, Dunmire's goons kill the old man by setting his home ablaze.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Nov. 2025
Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
Now, fresh reporting by the New York Times documents the wild ride that turned a group of crypto goons into a national laughing stock.
—Joe Wilkins Published Feb 5, Futurism, 5 Feb. 2026
Get your goons out of Minnesota.
—Becca Longmire, PEOPLE, 29 Jan. 2026
Senate Democrats should continue to block Homeland Security funding until the goons are gone from Minnesota and Noem is gone from Washington.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 29 Jan. 2026
He’s aided by Jessica Jones, who uses her super strength (and sarcasm) to beat up Kingpin’s goons.
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 27 Jan. 2026
The fear caused by her masked goons and their disregard of due process leaves us citizens afraid to leave their homes.
—Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 22 Jan. 2026
But the sequences featuring Jimmy Crystal and his goons are far more sadistic, and needlessly unpleasant.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 14 Jan. 2026
But when Theo decides to sell to Dwight instead, Dunmire's goons kill the old man by setting his home ablaze.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for goons
Noun
-
One gets the sense, reading DuBois, that Stanton’s fervor for political action stemmed from a dread of being governed by idiots.—
Moira Donegan,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
-
These people are idiots; who would fall for this?—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The centerpiece is, of course, the melee/dance-off between the ensemble in white tutus and the violent thugs, toe blade and all.—
Lé Baltar,
IndieWire,
14 Mar. 2026
-
The Democrats, though, have no problems releasing all these bloodthirsty thugs back into the neighborhood.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The Dilbert principle — traced back to a quote in a 1995 strip — posited that managers and higher-ups are actually successful morons whose stubbornness is confused for real leadership qualities.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Overwhelmingly, though, the most common response was to seek confirmation of their suspicions that Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers were morons.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
That way, even if your data circulates, criminals have a harder time breaking in.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
14 Mar. 2026
-
By demanding justice and dignity for the drug-war dead, were nuns, priests, pastors, and other sympathizers not protecting criminals?—
Sheila Coronel,
The Atlantic,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Even then, though, the popular take — the story of the lunatics taking over asylum — didn’t sit right with me.—
Paul Fischer,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Beating these lunatics was incredible, right?—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Together, the grimy pair start riding the rails across the country, watching movies starring Frank’s favorite actor, Ronnie Reed (Jake Gyllenhaal), and somehow sparking a feminist plot to overthrow the kinds of mean gangsters who killed Ida in the first place.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
6 Mar. 2026
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After a career defined by playing gangsters, an avenging taxi driver and a paranoid prize fighter, the Oscar-winning actor recited a call for civility, as first spoken by Abraham Lincoln.—
Hillel Italie,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
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With ‘live’ scenes from the ship’s top deck, Marvel villains had invaded the cruise and the screens showed our heroes in action, saving the day.—
Helen Wright,
TheWeek,
11 Mar. 2026
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On one level, the Nazis here are stereotypical adventure story villains, yet specific actual Nazi atrocities are discussed and the suffering of French citizens is deeply felt.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Police arrested one of four snowball bandits caught on camera clobbering the cops with snow.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Traditional western dramas were more likely to depict vaqueros as bandits than hard-working ranch hands whose contributions were fundamental to the American West.—
Foreign Correspondent,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Goons.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goons. Accessed 16 Mar. 2026.
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