as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
London bobbies clearing the streets of hooligans
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hooligan
Gallagher has previously apologized for a homophobic tweet about Russian soccer hooligans, for posting a death threat to an Atletico Madrid player, and for insulting Coldplay, and has deleted other posts over the years, including one containing an ableist slur.
—
Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 4 July 2025
The left would be wise to wake up to this fact and start acting with some decorum, instead of like a bunch of power-drunk hooligans.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 24 June 2025
There’s a little bit of fear now, of people losing control, of hooligans.
—Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 19 May 2025
More menacingly, anti-Semitic Polish-nationalist hooligans have mounting success enforcing a boycott against Jewish merchants in villages across the region.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hooligan
Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 4 July 2025
The left would be wise to wake up to this fact and start acting with some decorum, instead of like a bunch of power-drunk hooligans.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 24 June 2025
There’s a little bit of fear now, of people losing control, of hooligans.
—Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 19 May 2025
More menacingly, anti-Semitic Polish-nationalist hooligans have mounting success enforcing a boycott against Jewish merchants in villages across the region.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hooligan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hooligan
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
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Girls were there and there were guys that were really extra on some thug, some goon sh*t.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Flock Safety argues its drone system can act as a deterrent simply by being visible, making criminals think twice before targeting a store.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
11 Oct. 2025
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So those drums can fall into the hands of criminals who then refill them with the cheaper, toxic liquids and pass them off as the pharmaceutical-grade product, selling them to drug manufacturers who are looking to save money on ingredients.—
Gabrielle Emanuel,
NPR,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Two sisters with a tragic story are said to linger upstairs at Langston’s Western Wear, and unexplained voices and rattling glassware have been heard at Gabriella’s Italian Grill, a Prohibition-era building with a gangsters and gambling history.—
Beth Luberecki,
USA Today,
11 Oct. 2025
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Mint follows Shannon, the naïve daughter of the area’s dominant crime family, desperately searching for love in the shadow of her gangster father, Dylan (Sam Riley).—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
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So there's always a chance that Tatum's red-eyed bandit could be making a lot more appearances in the future!—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Oct. 2025
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What a perfect opportunity for the island’s shoe bandit to strike again!—
Nick Caruso,
TVLine,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The cast also includes Eugene Byrd as a young version of classic Spider-Man villain Tombstone, Hugh Dancy as Otto Octavius, MCU star Charlie Cox as Daredevil, Kari Wahlgren as Aunt May, Aleks Le as Amadeus Cho and Jonathan Medina as the villainous Scorpion.—
Jordan Moreau,
Variety,
11 Oct. 2025
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The tournaments pit heroes like Liu Kang, Raiden, and Sonya Blade against such villains as Shang Tsung, Shao Kahn, and Scorpion.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Aleah and Grasso end up saving Lizzie’s ass and capturing the hoodlums.—
Grace Byron,
Vulture,
22 Sep. 2025
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Whereas the Star Wars sequels woefully misused the actor's talents, this movie puts them center stage, playing one of the teen hoodlums who join forces with their victim to fight off nasty, otherworldly invaders.—
Chris Snellgrove,
EW.com,
12 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The protests are led by a youth movement which uses symbols — including a pirate flag from popular Japanese manga One Piece, a stand-in for confronting oppression — associated with demonstrations in other countries, including Morocco, Nepal, and Peru.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
14 Oct. 2025
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In the Tatsuya Nagamine movie, Z is the name of an admiral who has sworn to destroy all the pirates of the New World, because of the pirates’ dream to have no leader, motivated only by their alliances that uphold the interests of every person and community.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hooligan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hooligan. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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