as in boxers
one that engages in the sport of fighting with the fists
a retired pug with battered ears and swollen knuckles
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pugs
Short-muzzle breeds like pugs and bull dogs are at higher risk of heat stroke, as are older dogs, overweight dogs and dogs with medical conditions, according to Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine.
—
Eva Flowe
june 22,
Charlotte Observer,
22 June 2026
Soon my entire feed was pugs and poodles and beagles and portmanteau blends with absurd names like golden doodle and cavapoo.
—
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
Breeds with breathing issues — including bulldogs, pugs, boxers, Boston terriers and Persian cats — are also more susceptible to heat illness, state health officials said.
—
Sacbee.com,
10 June 2026
Sleepy pugs and a return Rinker’s family stayed in a Huntington Beach hotel room with one bed.
—
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Dog breeds like pugs and French and English bulldogs now have significantly altered skull shapes that result in serious, and even life-threatening, issues created by our value of aesthetics.
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New Atlas,
24 Apr. 2026
This frenzy unfolded into a succession of rings, like craps tables at a casino, in which breed competitions were taking place simultaneously—churning packs of basenjis, salukis, Xoloitzcuintlis, whippets, shih tzus, rat terriers, malamutes, and pugs.
—
Andrew Norman Wilson,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Feb. 2026
The team then compared the 14 breeds to pugs, French bulldogs, and bulldogs.
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Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
18 Feb. 2026
Airport arrivals involved a motorcade, with a luggage van, a car for the pugs, and butlers, who escorted the dogs onto the waiting private jets.
—
Matt Tyrnauer,
Vanity Fair,
20 Jan. 2026
Eva Flowe
june 22,
Charlotte Observer,
22 June 2026
Soon my entire feed was pugs and poodles and beagles and portmanteau blends with absurd names like golden doodle and cavapoo.
—
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
Breeds with breathing issues — including bulldogs, pugs, boxers, Boston terriers and Persian cats — are also more susceptible to heat illness, state health officials said.
—
Sacbee.com,
10 June 2026
Sleepy pugs and a return Rinker’s family stayed in a Huntington Beach hotel room with one bed.
—
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Dog breeds like pugs and French and English bulldogs now have significantly altered skull shapes that result in serious, and even life-threatening, issues created by our value of aesthetics.
—
New Atlas,
24 Apr. 2026
This frenzy unfolded into a succession of rings, like craps tables at a casino, in which breed competitions were taking place simultaneously—churning packs of basenjis, salukis, Xoloitzcuintlis, whippets, shih tzus, rat terriers, malamutes, and pugs.
—
Andrew Norman Wilson,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Feb. 2026
The team then compared the 14 breeds to pugs, French bulldogs, and bulldogs.
—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
18 Feb. 2026
Airport arrivals involved a motorcade, with a luggage van, a car for the pugs, and butlers, who escorted the dogs onto the waiting private jets.
—
Matt Tyrnauer,
Vanity Fair,
20 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pugs
Noun
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Enter the brothers Moon, a troubled pair of Korean immigrant boxers who’ve carved out a life for themselves in the City of Angels, far away from the Beverly Hills mansions and Hollywood royalty of last season.
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The new documentary follows Louis through his upbringing in Alabama and Detroit, rise through the ranks of American boxing in the 1930s and bouts with Schmeling, a German heavyweight who was considered one of the world's best boxers at the time.
Noun
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Roman emperors used gladiators to do just that.
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Thus, in a moment celebrated by the poet Martial in his Liber de Spectaculis, the emperor Titus freed two gladiators on the opening day of the Colosseum.
Noun
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Some of the young fighters and their coach spoke with CBS News Chicago about the impact the program has inside and outside the ring.
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Though Hezbollah has largely been more effective this year than in the 2024 conflict, the recent fighting in Lebanon was just as imbalanced as two years ago, with thousands of Hezbollah fighters being killed at the cost of a few dozen Israeli military troops.
Cite this Entry
“Pugs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pugs. Accessed 30 Jun. 2026.
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