as in thugs
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
London bobbies clearing the streets of hooligans
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hooligans
Noun
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Their neighbor, an older Jewish woman, gets arrested and Nazi thugs brazenly loot her apartment.—
Rabih Alameddine
September 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Sep. 2025 -
As night falls, armed thugs roam the streets and families pick up guns to protect themselves.—
Oren Liebermann,
CNN Money,
24 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The immediate impact on public opinion is hard to gauge, but, as the war went on, the picture came to stand for the belief that in supporting South Vietnam, the United States was supporting war criminals.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
27 Sep. 2025
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When Netflix premieres The Witcher season 4, Ciri will now be living off the grid as Falka with the Rats, a group of young criminals.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Now is the time to push back in defense of free speech – as strongly and as publicly as the gangsters on the left and right are threatening to revoke it.—
Onkar Ghate,
Oc Register,
26 Sep. 2025
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Unlike Mare, whose community was cloistered and intimate, Task builds a wider world of dealers, gangsters, and thieves, not always to its benefit.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
17 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Over $200 Off NFL Sunday Ticket NFL fans can make out like bandits with the DraftKings Sportsbook welcome offer.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
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Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern were cast as the bumbling but dogged bandits, Harry and Marv, and Catherine O’Hara brought humor and compassion to the part of Kevin’s mother.—
Tim Greiving,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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She's gone toe to toe with Marvel villains, T-rexes and Bill Murray.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
27 Sep. 2025
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Race is one of many concerns in Vineland, but One Battle After Another sets itself apart as a studio film with vividly, absurdly ugly racist villains, arguing satirically but unflinchingly that white supremacy continues to be the guiding principle for American power.—
Rory Doherty,
Time,
26 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Hooligans.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hooligans. Accessed 3 Oct. 2025.
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