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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Recent Examples of hooligan
The film stars Boon as Tommy, a 19-year-old hooligan who wakes up from an all-night bender in the basement of a strange suburban home, bound with a chain around his neck.
—
Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 4 Sep. 2025
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
On the same day as the Bradford fire, a spectator was killed during one of the worst hooligan fights at a game between Birmingham and Leeds.
—Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hooligan
Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 4 Sep. 2025
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
On the same day as the Bradford fire, a spectator was killed during one of the worst hooligan fights at a game between Birmingham and Leeds.
—Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hooligan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hooligan
Noun
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Of course, Sarah and her mom continue to believe that God is on their side, even after the family home is attacked by oil company thugs and a reliable ally winds up on the wrong end of a shotgun.—
Joe Leydon,
Variety,
7 Nov. 2025
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No thug could hurt Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini)—North Jersey mob boss and sufferer of panic attacks—like his own family.—
John Ortved,
Vogue,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In other court cases, some civil and some criminal, involving a total of nearly 300 additional hectares near Vlora, Shehu and his family members are accused of grabbing property through similar forgeries.—
Lindita Cela,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
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The trio has a surprisingly good theory about the implosion of the makeshift Astral Pulse; seems like Shroud never found the original, and someone has been outfitting low-level criminals with bootlegs that are going awry like Robert’s.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Stumpy the gangster, Bev the Mormon.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
9 Nov. 2025
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Metrotone Media’s Katharina Gellein Viken, meanwhile, revealed a new micro-drama in the works, a mockumentary about the making of a low-budget British gangster flick.—
Stewart Clarke,
Deadline,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Security analyst Nnamdi Obasi, a senior adviser at the International Crisis Group think tank, explained that while extremist groups have wreaked havoc against both Christians and Muslims in the northeast of Nigeria, bandit groups have terrorized predominantly Muslim communities in the northwest.—
Nimi Princewill,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
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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
Noun
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This year’s furry green villain is more funny than scary, his behavior unthreatening, his confrontational manner with the Whos never feeling particularly dangerous.—
Rob Hubbard,
Twin Cities,
8 Nov. 2025
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The cast picture also included Brett Gelman, Priah Ferguson, Cara Buono, Amybeth McNulty and Jamie Campbell Bower, the latter who joined the cast in season 4 as the show's villain, Vecna.—
Kelsie Gibson,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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These involve raiding the lairs of hoodlum rivals, then singlehandedly dissuading them from competition.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
28 Oct. 2025
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The story, originally conceived by Truffaut, is a thin, desultory affair, about a French hoodlum on the run and his doomed fling with an American expat.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
27 Sep. 2025
Noun
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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
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One could be seen wearing an all-denim outfit with an In-N-Out Burger employee hat, while the other wore a floral-print dress with a pirate-style hat.—
Kayla Grant,
PEOPLE,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hooligan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hooligan. Accessed 15 Nov. 2025.
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