as in thugs
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
sent over a couple of hulking plug-uglies to rough up the store owner
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plug-uglies
Noun
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In a season 3 teaser, Peter saves Suraj Sharma's Jay Batra from some thugs at a soccer stadium.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Feb. 2026 -
Foucauld had later left the army to become a Trappist monk and had established himself as a missionary in Tamanrasset, Algeria, in the middle of the Sahara Desert; he was killed there by local thugs in 1916.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Whenever there is American resolve, global criminals weaken.—
Rebecca Schneid,
Time,
28 Feb. 2026
-
And whenever America is determined, global criminals weaken.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
And where do the villains come in?—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
25 Feb. 2026
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His heroic actions — along with those of returning protagonists Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) —ultimately foil the villains.—
Carole Horst,
Variety,
24 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Responding officers placed both offenders into custody.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2026
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Products that heat or continuously disperse fragrance (including traditional plug-in air fresheners) may be the worst offenders.—
Allison Hatfield,
Dallas Morning News,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The Somali pirates who ransacked Minnesota remind us that there are large parts of the world where bribery, corruption, and lawlessness are the norm, not the exception.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
25 Feb. 2026
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The Somali pirates who ransacked Minnesota remind us that there are large parts of the world where bribery, corruption and lawlessness are the norm, not the exception.—
TIME Staff,
Time,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
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And those master assassins would turn out to be a pair of undercover feds.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
26 Feb. 2026
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After diplomatic negotiations, the Iranian state called off its assassins in 1998.—
Anderson Cooper,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In retaliation, gangsters took to the streets to light vehicles and businesses on fire, carjack cars and buses, and cause mayhem across multiple states.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
23 Feb. 2026
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Now, all Addison can tell us is that the show begins with two young Dubliners who are looking for treasure and are on the run from gangsters.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Traditional western dramas were more likely to depict vaqueros as bandits than hard-working ranch hands whose contributions were fundamental to the American West.—
Foreign Correspondent,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
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The bandits are those who help themselves and cause others a loss.—
Jonny Thomson,
Big Think,
11 Feb. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Plug-uglies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plug-uglies. Accessed 4 Mar. 2026.
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