1
as in to lick
to strike repeatedly
she was badly roughed up by her boxing partner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to abuse
to abuse physically
the photographer claimed that he had been roughed up by the actor's bodyguards outside the club
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rough (up)
Verb
-
Mitch West, meanwhile, was licking his wounds on Monday night, when snow still hadn’t touched down in his region of South Carolina.—
Brady Brickner-Wood,
New Yorker,
28 Jan. 2026 -
England’s Test team are still licking their wounds after their humbling Down Under.—
Sam Dalling,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office said Kayode Agbolade Ogunba allegedly abused patients at a local care home.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The victim-survivor in this case was not the only child Weberman abused.—
Guila Benchimol,
New York Daily News,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Didn't seem to be hiding anything.—
Sarah Prior,
CBS News,
25 Jan. 2026
-
But hiding behind this benign climate state was all that titanic power flowing through the climate system.—
Adam Frank,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In severe cases, the virus can attack parts of the brain that control basic life functions like eye movement, heart rate and blood pressure, causing permanent damage.—
Michal Ruprecht,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Ukraine's air force said that Russia attacked overnight with one ballistic missile and 146 strike drones, 103 of which were shot down or destroyed using electronic warfare.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Forecasters are warning the damage, especially in areas pounded by ice, could rival a hurricane.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Jan. 2026
-
By Jason Mackey Pittsburgh Post-Gazette PALM BEACH GARDENS — The pop of a catcher’s mitt mixed with saws screeching and hammers pounding provides an appropriate soundtrack inside Paul Skenes’ offseason workout facility, a baseball-lover’s paradise and an encapsulation of his unique personality.—
Tribune News Service,
The Orlando Sentinel,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In a separate operation, Nigerian soldiers ambushed militants in the border area between the Kebbi and Sokoto states, Osoba added.—
Greg Norman-Diamond,
FOXNews.com,
21 Jan. 2026
-
When their convoy is brutally ambushed, Amber is forced to put her life in Tibor’s hands.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
San Benito County Sheriff Eric Taylor took to social media Thursday to lash out at bystanders who record police encounters and critics of law enforcement, following a violent Wednesday crime spree that ended with a suspect dead and a police officer wounded.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2026
-
But the evidence suggests that people who rely on bursts of venting tend to stay angrier for longer, and are more likely to lash out aggressively.—
Will Barker,
TheWeek,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
After his holstered gun was discovered under his coat and removed while he was being manhandled, he was executed on the spot by one of the officers despite lying unarmed and defenseless on the ground.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Miami hoped to use its sheer size to manhandle Indiana and dominate both lines of scrimmage.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
20 Jan. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Rough (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rough%20%28up%29. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
