as in boxers
one that engages in the sport of fighting with the fists
a retired pug with battered ears and swollen knuckles
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Recent Examples of pugs
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
Valentino and his longtime partner Giancarlo Giammetti flitted among their homes — which also included places in New York, London, Rome, Capri and Gstaad, Switzerland — traveling with their pack of pugs.
—CBS News, 19 Jan. 2026
And multiple servants in white gloves to tend to the pugs.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 19 Jan. 2026
The largest groups of dog breeds entered into the competition include 149 golden retrievers, 143 dachshunds, 110 French bulldogs, 106 Chihuahuas, 105 Australian shepherds, 100 Labrador retrievers, 82 whippets, 65 Rhodesian ridgebacks, 60 Pomeranians, 58 Chinese cresteds, and 57 pugs.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
Photography was not an unusual hobby for a young woman of her milieu, and many of Austen’s early images depict a world of genteel Victorian amusements—parties gathered on porches and scenic overlooks, happy pugs, sunny days in leg-of-mutton sleeves.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 22 Nov. 2025
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
Valentino and his longtime partner Giancarlo Giammetti flitted among their homes — which also included places in New York, London, Rome, Capri and Gstaad, Switzerland — traveling with their pack of pugs.
—CBS News, 19 Jan. 2026
And multiple servants in white gloves to tend to the pugs.
—Matt Donnelly, Variety, 19 Jan. 2026
The largest groups of dog breeds entered into the competition include 149 golden retrievers, 143 dachshunds, 110 French bulldogs, 106 Chihuahuas, 105 Australian shepherds, 100 Labrador retrievers, 82 whippets, 65 Rhodesian ridgebacks, 60 Pomeranians, 58 Chinese cresteds, and 57 pugs.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
Photography was not an unusual hobby for a young woman of her milieu, and many of Austen’s early images depict a world of genteel Victorian amusements—parties gathered on porches and scenic overlooks, happy pugs, sunny days in leg-of-mutton sleeves.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 22 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pugs
Noun
-
The two most prominent boxers of their generation will meet again 11 years after Mayweather beat Pacquiao by decision in a fight that didn’t live up to the decade of hype preceding it.—
Greg Beacham,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Feb. 2026
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What used to take a boutique agency in Soho three weeks, a $50,000 budget and a crew of 20 can now be spat out by a guy in his boxers at two in the morning using Midjourney and Sora.—
Michele Zanello,
Rolling Stone,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Being trained in combat, and armed with swords, spears, and bows and arrows, the gladiators were able to turn the tables on the wild beasts; the result was another predictable slaughter, in this case of the animals.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Feb. 2026
-
There were dancing gladiators and moka pots, a phalanx of runway models dressed (in Armani) in green, white and red, to represent the Italian flag.—
Robert Lloyd,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Many are wives or widows of IS fighters and their children.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
25 Feb. 2026
-
News Underneath the Shujaiya neighborhood in Gaza City, mattresses once used by Hamas fighters remain on the floor of a dormitory built in a tunnel by the militant group.—
Marissa Martinez,
NBC news,
25 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pugs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pugs. Accessed 28 Feb. 2026.
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