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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gorilla
The birth, which is the first of 2026, brings the Bageni family of gorillas to 59 members, which is the largest in the park.
—
Kirsty Hatcher, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
Pictures released by the park’s press service showed the 22-year-old Mafuko holding the two baby gorillas, sitting on the ground and partly obscured by branches with green leaves.
—Reuters, NBC news, 8 Jan. 2026
Packed with extraordinary gorilla behavior never filmed before, this is a story of hope and joy.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 7 Jan. 2026
Forget about 100 men vs one gorilla — what about three teenage boys vs one middle-aged comedian?
—Ew Staff December 5, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gorilla
Kirsty Hatcher, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
Pictures released by the park’s press service showed the 22-year-old Mafuko holding the two baby gorillas, sitting on the ground and partly obscured by branches with green leaves.
—Reuters, NBC news, 8 Jan. 2026
Packed with extraordinary gorilla behavior never filmed before, this is a story of hope and joy.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 7 Jan. 2026
Forget about 100 men vs one gorilla — what about three teenage boys vs one middle-aged comedian?
—Ew Staff December 5, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gorilla
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gorilla
Noun
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Minnesotans, not the armed thugs of ICE and the Border Patrol, are brave.—
Adam Serwer,
The Atlantic,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Actively inserting yourself into and attempting to stymie federal law enforcement or barging into a church, as some of these thugs did in Minneapolis, is hindering law enforcement and trespassing, respectively.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Picking winners and losers, heroes and villains, pathways to success and failure, generates excitement for an event and manufactures a sense of urgency for maximal viewing pleasure.—
Brady Brickner-Wood,
New Yorker,
28 Jan. 2026
-
What the late Ka did to build resolve against the unforgiving brutalities of Brownsville, Marci combines with the flair of a Bond villain and contempt for anyone attempting to copy his mold.—
Dylan Green,
Pitchfork,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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There can be no doubt that in tax terms, America’s wealthiest families make out like bandits.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Jan. 2026
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The robbery lasted less than seven minutes, as the bandits used a truck with an extendable ladder to cut through a window on a second-floor balcony, according to police.—
Mason Leath,
ABC News,
27 Dec. 2025
Noun
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In 1991, Pesci won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of real-life gangster Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas.—
Sophie Dodd,
PEOPLE,
31 Jan. 2026
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His acting run continued in August with a role as a gangster in Caught Stealing, which, while less commercially successful, provided another strong entry in Bad Bunny’s growing film portfolio.—
Isabela Raygoza,
Billboard,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Immigration and Integration Minister Rasmus Stoklund said 315 foreign criminals from countries outside the European Union had received sentences of more than a year over the last five years but were not expelled.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
31 Jan. 2026
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The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment, but officials there have broadly defended the department’s actions as not only justified but necessary for ensuring the rule of law and holding alleged criminals to account.—
Kevin Rector,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Miller called him an assassin on social media; Vice President JD Vance reposted the message.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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The 384-page hardcover focuses on the game's main antagonist, crime lord Jaylen Vrax, and his intimidating assassin droid ND-5.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
These oil fields basically are pirate operations.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
4 Jan. 2026
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Notorious pirate Jean Lafitte frequented neighboring Grand Terre Island in the early 1800s.—
Kristy Christiansen,
Southern Living,
31 Dec. 2025
Noun
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The groups would then open the hood or door of the machines and wait to determine whether an alarm or a law enforcement response had been triggered.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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Discoveries about the underlying technical mechanisms within LLMs are showing us more so how AI personas happen under-the-hood.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gorilla.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gorilla. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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