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
In Africa, infection has been documented through the handling of infected fruit bats, monkeys, chimpanzees, gorillas, forest antelope and porcupines found ill or dead in the rainforest.
—
Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 2 June 2026
According to the zoo, the first 72 hours are the most critical for newborn gorillas.
—Erin Clack, PEOPLE, 31 May 2026
According to the zoo, fewer than a dozen C-sections have been performed on gorillas around the world.
—Tim Stelloh, NBC news, 27 May 2026
The hope is that Little Joe will fit in with the Pittsburgh Zoo's two females, 29-year-old Moka and 35-year-old Ibo, and the younger gorillas, 3-year-old Charlotte and 2-year-old Bo.
—Madeline Bartos, CBS News, 14 May 2026
The personable presenter not only got on with people but managed to befriend a family of gorillas in the forests of Rwanda’s Virunga Mountains.
—Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 8 May 2026
But Attenborough has had to accept the accolades this week as scientists, politicians and conservationists celebrated the man who has brought frolicking gorillas, breaching whales and tiny poisonous frogs into living rooms around the world for more than 70 years.
—ABC News, 8 May 2026
The Life on Earth section came with a message from Felix Ndagijimana at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund Karisoke research center in Rwanda, who updated on how the famous gorillas are doing since Attenborough visited 50 years ago.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 8 May 2026
Building these rudimentary and temporary platforms—something modern gorillas, orangutans, and chimpanzees still do—would have offered protection from predators and blood-sucking insects.
—Literary Hub, 1 May 2026
Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 2 June 2026
According to the zoo, the first 72 hours are the most critical for newborn gorillas.
—Erin Clack, PEOPLE, 31 May 2026
According to the zoo, fewer than a dozen C-sections have been performed on gorillas around the world.
—Tim Stelloh, NBC news, 27 May 2026
The hope is that Little Joe will fit in with the Pittsburgh Zoo's two females, 29-year-old Moka and 35-year-old Ibo, and the younger gorillas, 3-year-old Charlotte and 2-year-old Bo.
—Madeline Bartos, CBS News, 14 May 2026
The personable presenter not only got on with people but managed to befriend a family of gorillas in the forests of Rwanda’s Virunga Mountains.
—Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 8 May 2026
But Attenborough has had to accept the accolades this week as scientists, politicians and conservationists celebrated the man who has brought frolicking gorillas, breaching whales and tiny poisonous frogs into living rooms around the world for more than 70 years.
—ABC News, 8 May 2026
The Life on Earth section came with a message from Felix Ndagijimana at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund Karisoke research center in Rwanda, who updated on how the famous gorillas are doing since Attenborough visited 50 years ago.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 8 May 2026
Building these rudimentary and temporary platforms—something modern gorillas, orangutans, and chimpanzees still do—would have offered protection from predators and blood-sucking insects.
—Literary Hub, 1 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gorillas
Noun
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The masked thugs deposit a tearful middle-aged woman in front of Bass, Newsom, and Harris.—
Conor Friedersdorf,
The Atlantic,
12 May 2026
-
White thugs destroyed it in the 1921 Race Massacre.—
Jasmine Desiree,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2026
Noun
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The bigger issue is that many systems still rely on information criminals may already have, such as birthdays, addresses and partial Social Security numbers.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
30 May 2026
-
Morrison has covered stories worldwide, interviewing everyone from presidents and prime ministers, student protesters under fire in Tiananmen Square, to criminals, teachers, artists, actors and authors.—
Dateline NBC,
NBC news,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Fast forward two years, and they are now presented as villains in a way no other team has since the late 1990s Yankees teams.—
Ian Miller OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
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Simon was more interested in sociological dynamics about what makes a city tick than traditional heroes or villains, creating a complex portrait of humanity at its best and worst.—
Derek Lawrence,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
In every revolution, there are gangsters.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
28 May 2026
-
But when the pair decides to let Rotta go instead, Mando is captured by the bounty hunter Embo as punishment for double-crossing the slimy galactic gangsters, prompting Grogu (and a bunch of ridiculously cute Anzellans) to set out on an adventure to rescue him.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
24 May 2026
Noun
-
Deportees from the United States are especially vulnerable to robbery and kidnapping because gangs and bandits assume that their families can pay larger ransoms.—
Caitlin Dickerson,
The Atlantic,
15 May 2026
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Joined by her hapless but loyal classmate Curtis Mehlberg (Jacob Tremblay), Prue navigates a world of talking animals, bandits, and powerful figures driven by grief and ambition.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
13 May 2026
Noun
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The spot is known for its utter romance and distinct architecture, with buildings featuring balconies hovering over the water—it's said these were used by resident merchants to load their goods directly onto boats and (hopefully) avoid pirates.—
Stacey Leasca,
Travel + Leisure,
27 May 2026
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International actors have policed the pirates ever since the world first became aware of the Somali pirate crisis, when there were as many as 200 incidents of piracy between 2009 and 2011.—
Luke McGee,
Time,
27 May 2026
Noun
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Later, the team pieces together that the assassins were professionals who had been hired by someone with deep pockets.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 May 2026
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The film follows a unit of young assassins who belong to the titular organization, trained in a tropical rainforest by a figure known only as Master.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
12 May 2026
Noun
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California Highway Patrol officers are assigned to the Express Lanes and those toll roads and can certainly see expired tags and choose to pull over offenders.—
Jim Radcliffe,
Oc Register,
29 May 2026
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According to Doggett, the worst offenders are bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla).—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gorillas.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gorillas. Accessed 5 Jun. 2026.
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