1
as in to lick
to strike repeatedly
she was badly roughed up by her boxing partner
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
-
Chalk it up to a bad match, and lick your wounds.—
Harriette Cole,
Mercury News,
11 June 2026 -
Affected animals transfer rabies by biting, licking or scratching other animals and humans.—
Laura Horne,
Charlotte Observer,
11 June 2026
Verb
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Moreover, the states often abused their authority, both over their own citizens and with regard to each other.—
Jordan Cash,
The Conversation,
8 June 2026
-
And did the court abuse its discretion by imposing the 60-year minimum?—
Tom Olsen,
Twin Cities,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
This automatically measures the distance between the edges of the folding panels, uses sensors to detect offsets and recalibrates the brightness of adjacent LEDs to hide the tiny slot.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
13 June 2026
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Achieving it in reality would be brutally hard because the target moves, hides, jams, uses decoys, and fights back.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
Just attacking everything with strikes.—
Jeff Fletcher,
Oc Register,
11 June 2026
-
Police in the northwest Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights have released a sketch of a man accused of attacking and choking a woman this past weekend.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
11 June 2026
Verb
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They might be jolted awake with a pounding heart, multiple times a night, for years.—
Joanna Fong-Isariyawongse,
The Conversation,
11 June 2026
-
When the worker said yes, there followed a cacophony of voices, radios, and pounding boots as police stormed the property.—
Heidi Blake,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
Verb
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Investigators learned that the victim had been ambushed, and that at least one person had gotten out of another vehicle and shot the man — who was later identified as 26-year-old Justin Tran — before fleeing the scene.—
Sean Emery,
Oc Register,
12 June 2026
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Situated on Route 33 in Manalapan, this state park has preserved the 18th-century landscape of one of the biggest battles of the Revolutionary War, where the Continental Army ambushed the British army along their route from Philadelphia to New York City.—
USA TODAY Network,
USA Today,
10 June 2026
Verb
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Lately, though, the president has upset religious conservatives by posting a Christ-like image of himself online as well as lashing out at Pope Leo and the Vatican.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
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Iran’s lashing out at Israel for the sake of Hezbollah carries major risks.—
Sam Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
8 June 2026
Verb
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During this stretch, the Colts will face three AFC opponents, including the Steelers, who manhandled them last year and forced Jones to commit a career-high five turnovers in a loss.—
James Boyd,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
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Those ramped up after Ottawa was completely manhandled by the Canes, and never held the lead at any point in the series.—
Matt Reigle OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Rough (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rough%20%28up%29. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
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