as in thugs
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the mobster threatened to break his legs if he didn't pay up
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Recent Examples of mobsters
In the early 20th century, this man-versus-nature oasis was strong-armed into being when mobsters and casino magnates swept into the Nevada desert.
—
Zoey Goto, Architectural Digest, 6 May 2026
Giuliani was elected New York’s mayor in 1993 after serving as one of the nation’s highest-profile prosecutors, taking on mobsters and crooked Wall Street traders.
—Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 4 May 2026
Giuliani was elected New York’s mayor in 1993 after serving as one of the nation’s highest-profile prosecutors, taking on mobsters and crooked Wall Street traders.
—Roni Jacobson, New York Daily News, 3 May 2026
The indictment presents a detailed and devastating narrative of how, for years, officials in Sinaloa have allegedly worked hand in hand with mobsters, enriching themselves and allowing the gang to operate with seeming impunity.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2026
Local Minneapolis prosecutors had invoked the law to suppress a sensational, anti-Semitic tabloid, The Saturday Press, which had been relentlessly attacking city officials as corrupt and in league with Jewish mobsters.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Apr. 2026
In Big Mistakes, Levy and Taylor Ortega play siblings who shoplift a necklace from a jewelry store to give to their grandmother on her deathbed, only to be blackmailed by the mobsters that run the place into a series of increasingly stupid and dangerous errands.
—K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 3 Apr. 2026
The film will chart the pursuit and capture of one of America’s most ruthless mobsters and serial killers by notorious DEA Agent Jim Hunt (who also helped take down El Chapo) played by Paul Walter Hauser (Black Bird).
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 27 Mar. 2026
This leads to a chaotic rigmarole in which, bit by bit, the Hungarian mobsters stream downstairs to either take advantage of the girls or do away with them, forcing them to rely on their discipline and athletic training to mount a response.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 14 Mar. 2026
Zoey Goto, Architectural Digest, 6 May 2026
Giuliani was elected New York’s mayor in 1993 after serving as one of the nation’s highest-profile prosecutors, taking on mobsters and crooked Wall Street traders.
—Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 4 May 2026
Giuliani was elected New York’s mayor in 1993 after serving as one of the nation’s highest-profile prosecutors, taking on mobsters and crooked Wall Street traders.
—Roni Jacobson, New York Daily News, 3 May 2026
The indictment presents a detailed and devastating narrative of how, for years, officials in Sinaloa have allegedly worked hand in hand with mobsters, enriching themselves and allowing the gang to operate with seeming impunity.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2026
Local Minneapolis prosecutors had invoked the law to suppress a sensational, anti-Semitic tabloid, The Saturday Press, which had been relentlessly attacking city officials as corrupt and in league with Jewish mobsters.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Apr. 2026
In Big Mistakes, Levy and Taylor Ortega play siblings who shoplift a necklace from a jewelry store to give to their grandmother on her deathbed, only to be blackmailed by the mobsters that run the place into a series of increasingly stupid and dangerous errands.
—K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 3 Apr. 2026
The film will chart the pursuit and capture of one of America’s most ruthless mobsters and serial killers by notorious DEA Agent Jim Hunt (who also helped take down El Chapo) played by Paul Walter Hauser (Black Bird).
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 27 Mar. 2026
This leads to a chaotic rigmarole in which, bit by bit, the Hungarian mobsters stream downstairs to either take advantage of the girls or do away with them, forcing them to rely on their discipline and athletic training to mount a response.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 14 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mobsters
Noun
-
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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In Gray’s taut thriller, set in 1980s Brighton Beach; the Gowanus area of Brooklyn; and Great Neck, Long Island, two brothers (Driver and Teller) fall afoul of Russian gangsters in a rapidly transforming city where high-stakes opportunities for riches also come with a high risk of life and limb.—
Jada Yuan,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
-
The only ones making money on alcohol now were gangsters.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
12 May 2026
Noun
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When unhoused people are treated as criminals, they are pushed into an identity of exclusion rather than belonging.—
Shianne LeClaire,
Hartford Courant,
17 May 2026
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That’s the job of law enforcement, who make arrests, judges who sentence criminals to pay for their crimes, and a parole board that cares about public safety.—
Boston Herald editorial staff,
Boston Herald,
15 May 2026
Noun
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Similarly, Sage’s (Susan Heyward) reverse heel turn and Ashley’s (Colby Minifie) life-saving assistance in the West Wing are apparently good enough deeds to spare these savory villains a more commensurate sentence.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
20 May 2026
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Staying true to what Rosen said about the show’s absence of clear villains, Flynn agreed that his cam boy may not be a typical bad guy.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
19 May 2026
Noun
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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 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
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Riquelme Vega, a Chilean Dutch cocaine importer also in the Super Cartel, wanted to murder a rival in Dubai by sending a team of Colombian assassins to the Emirates, Kinahan voiced his disapproval.—
Ed Caesar,
New Yorker,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Using the latest version of Epic’s Unreal Engine, each Smugglers Run locale is heavily detailed, putting us in more of a dogfight as the Mandalorian chases down pirates and ex-Imperial officers.—
Todd Martens,
Los Angeles Times,
21 May 2026
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Over the past quarter-century, the UKMTO has dealt with other shipping crises too, as when Somali pirates were most active during the late 2000s or Houthi rebels in Yemen intensified their attacks on vessels passing through the Red Sea in 2023.—
Issy Ronald,
CNN Money,
17 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mobsters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mobsters. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
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