as in vulgarity
the quality or state of being obscene
audience members were offended by the raunchiness of the jokes
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Recent Examples of raunchiness
There’s also a love triangle involving Bull, Honey, and a snooty Borzoi (Beck Bennett) which is meant to gird all of the self-conscious raunchiness with rom-com sweetness, and somehow makes the whole affair feel even more phony and half-baked.
—
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 13 Aug. 2025
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for raunchiness
Noun
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The production is known for its humor as much as its vulgarity, and on Thursday night, the Out Front Theatre Company is raising the curtain on the off-Broadway production.—
Monique John,
CBS News,
29 Jan. 2026
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With its insistent, obsessive patter, not to mention its unrelenting commitment to in-your-face vulgarity, Sherman’s comedy is hardly for everyone.—
Naomi Fry,
New Yorker,
6 Dec. 2025
Noun
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He is charged with open and lewd grossness.—
Flint McColgan,
Boston Herald,
24 Oct. 2025
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In fact, plenty of other things in your home surpass the toilet in terms of grossness.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
24 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The other funnymen of the time—Milton Berle with his lewd suggestiveness, Jackie Gleason with his baleful roar—did the same shtick over and over.—
David Denby,
New Yorker,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
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There’s some rudeness, aggressive conversations, and crudeness, but nothing too over the top.—
Lynnette Nicholas,
Parents,
4 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Why did so many people in states with Democrat-majority governments want to keep the COVID emergency going, want it so badly that all rational arguments offered in support of reopening were ignored or answered with obscenity-laden accusations of grandma-killing?—
Susan Shelley,
Oc Register,
7 Jan. 2026
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Pandering obscenity is a felony and could mean eight years in prison and a $15,000 fine for McCollister if he is convicted.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
28 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Despite the heavy central theme of chronic illness, there’s a delicious bawdiness to Will There Ever Be Another You, a vulgar juvenilia evoking graffiti-tag genitals or the ding dong ditch scene from Billy Madison.—
Eric Olson
September 23,
Literary Hub,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
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There is plenty of coarseness in American arenas totally unrelated to MAGA or Trumpism, of course.—
Sally Jenkins,
The Atlantic,
11 Oct. 2025
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An alkaline compound, baking soda is a non-toxic cleaner with a coarseness that works wonders for scrubbing grime, removing difficult stains, and deodorizing stinky odors.—
Lauren David,
Southern Living,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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However, its effectiveness in thoroughly cleaning depends on the degree of dirtiness.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Dec. 2025
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This dirtiness is the crux of the matter for Sherman.—
Naomi Fry,
New Yorker,
6 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Raunchiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/raunchiness. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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