as in thugs
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
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Recent Examples of gorillas
Humans have a much larger neocortex than other animals, relative to body size, and the species with the largest neocortices—elephants, dolphins, gorillas, chimpanzees, dogs—are among the most intelligent.
—
James Somers, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
The two gorillas were tentatively named Samson and Sambo, and a contest was held to suggest new names for the pair.
—Elaine Rewolinski, jsonline.com, 22 Oct. 2025
Nkuringo Safaris offers a 10-day Great Apes Photography safari that includes gorillas, chimps, and golden monkeys in some of Uganda’s national parks.
—Essence, 20 Oct. 2025
According to her, the zoo takes the palatable trees removed from the preserve — dogwood, sumac, elm, mulberry, and boxelder — and feeds them to a variety of zoo animals, including gorillas, elephants, and giraffes.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 17 Oct. 2025
While Goodall focused on chimps, Dian Fossey studied gorillas and Birutė Galdikas studied orangutans.
—Tricia Escobedo, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2025
Across mammal species, from baboons and gorillas up to humans, females usually live longer than the males do.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Oct. 2025
John Mitani is a professor emeritus of anthropology at the University of Michigan, whose studies over 45 years have included wild chimpanzees in Uganda and Tanzania; gibbons and orangutans in Indonesia, gorillas in Rwanda, and bonobos in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
—Keith Matheny, Freep.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Zoo officials said gorillas in the wild typically live between 30 and 40 years, although those in captivity often live longer.
—Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
James Somers, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
The two gorillas were tentatively named Samson and Sambo, and a contest was held to suggest new names for the pair.
—Elaine Rewolinski, jsonline.com, 22 Oct. 2025
Nkuringo Safaris offers a 10-day Great Apes Photography safari that includes gorillas, chimps, and golden monkeys in some of Uganda’s national parks.
—Essence, 20 Oct. 2025
According to her, the zoo takes the palatable trees removed from the preserve — dogwood, sumac, elm, mulberry, and boxelder — and feeds them to a variety of zoo animals, including gorillas, elephants, and giraffes.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 17 Oct. 2025
While Goodall focused on chimps, Dian Fossey studied gorillas and Birutė Galdikas studied orangutans.
—Tricia Escobedo, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2025
Across mammal species, from baboons and gorillas up to humans, females usually live longer than the males do.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Oct. 2025
John Mitani is a professor emeritus of anthropology at the University of Michigan, whose studies over 45 years have included wild chimpanzees in Uganda and Tanzania; gibbons and orangutans in Indonesia, gorillas in Rwanda, and bonobos in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
—Keith Matheny, Freep.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Zoo officials said gorillas in the wild typically live between 30 and 40 years, although those in captivity often live longer.
—Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gorillas
Noun
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In The Big Lebowski, thugs mistake the titular slacker (Bridges) for the wealthy Jeffrey Lebowski, sending him on a wild investigation with his pal Walter (John Goodman) into a ransom plot involving Lebowski’s young wife (Tara Reid).—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
8 Oct. 2025
-
Their neighbor, an older Jewish woman, gets arrested and Nazi thugs brazenly loot her apartment.—
Rabih Alameddine
September 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
To suggest that another candidate’s supporters are criminals — particularly when that candidate is, by all measures, poised to win at least a plurality of votes in the city — does not seem like a recipe for earning New Yorkers’ support.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
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Binance also lacked protocols — standard for financial services companies — to report transactions for money laundering risks, according to the Justice Department, and employees were well aware that such an oversight would invite criminals to the platform.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Yet if the Dodgers are to be cast as villains from the Book of Samuel, Toronto brought to the fight far more than pebbles.—
Andy McCullough,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
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For the 2017 Dress to Be Free Halloween Party at House of Yes in New York City, Cardi B went as one of Disney's most notorious villains.—
Catherine Santino,
PEOPLE,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
McLusky, however, isn’t interested in meeting new gangsters or unknown criminals in his town.—
Demetrius Patterson,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Oct. 2025
-
The other is about Chicago-style gangsters circa 1929.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The country has faced years of bloodshed from Boko Haram militants and armed bandits, whose motives are often linked more to territorial control and ransom than to religion.—
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
-
In classical antiquity, the mountainous region was notorious for bandits; in modern times, blood feuds among clans were rife.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Just like Scott said, there were a lot of pirates out there.—
Dan Morrison,
USA Today,
7 Nov. 2025
-
The book, which is from Australia, follows Bee and her fellow runaways, who discover a new friend, Paco, is a Lost Boy from Neverland who needs them to fight hordes of pirates led by a merciless new leader.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Presidential assassins and all this dark stuff.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Up until then, slashers were silent assassins or a breather.—
Raechal Shewfelt,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The laws expand on prior legislation by increasing penalties for offenders and allowing vehicles to be towed for reckless driving.—
Drake Bentley,
jsonline.com,
5 Nov. 2025
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Police Chief Johnny Jennings decried repeat criminal offenders and said Mecklenburg County again needs a detention facility for teenagers during a lunch in south Charlotte on Tuesday.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gorillas.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gorillas. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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