rough (up)

verb

Definition of rough (up)next
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)
  1. lick
  2. abuse
  3. hide
  4. attack
  5. pound
  6. ambush
  7. lash
  8. manhandle
Verb
  • In the post, Wouter was pictured wearing a dog cone, which is used to prevent pets from licking, chewing or scratching surgical sites or wounds.
    — Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Baldwin’s post featured a video of the dog licking a cherry ice pop and looking at the rain.
    — Ingrid Vasquez, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of lick
Verb
  • Meanwhile, local Church leaders hope the pope's visit will repair the Church's standing after a crushing 2021 report found that some 330,000 French children had been abused by Catholic clergy and lay leaders over seven decades.
    — Joshua McElwee, Arkansas Online, 26 Sep. 2026
  • An example of warrantless seizure could be a case in which an officer sees a dog being abused and takes the animal.
    — Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of abuse
Verb
  • The Trask twins have grown up with the lie that their mother died, and while Cal hides his wounds from that absence, Aron doesn’t.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Interior designers and professional organizers say most kitchens hide usable square footage in plain sight, trapped behind clutter, bad habits and bulky gear that could be stored smarter or edited out entirely.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of hide
Verb
  • An official of Congo's ruling party UDPS, Marie-Célestin Karondwa, was attacked by unknown suspects Sunday for defending the government's measures against Ebola on a radio program and was in critical condition, according to the UDPS.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Additionally, the agents were apparently not instructed to attack or compromise the UN website.
    — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of attack
Verb
  • Moscow's forces pounded apartment buildings, offices, gas stations and data centers, among other targets.
    — HANNA ARHIROVA, Arkansas Online, 29 Sep. 2026
  • On a hot Saturday, Pawlikowski and I revisited those heights—the slopes from which, for almost four years, starting in the spring of 1992, Serbian artillery pounded Sarajevo, which lies vulnerably cupped in the valley below.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of pound
Verb
  • However, the night took a turn when Kanye West ambushed Swift’s acceptance speech, creating one of the most infamous moments in the awards show’s history — and subsequently sparking a years-long feud with Swift.
    — Emily Weaver, PEOPLE, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Hansen, who left NBC in 2013 but remains a leader in the pervert-ambushing space, has spoken about having considered a sting operation against Jeffrey Epstein in 2015.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of ambush
Verb
  • The worst of the deadly nor'easter that's lashed the Northeast is behind us, and Monday will feature minor impacts as the storm winds down.
    — Kenton Gewecke, ABC News, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Ana Navarro and Sunny Hostin lashed out at Judge Judy’s remarks about unhappy Americans.
    — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of lash
Verb
  • Hours later, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, announced the suspension of Acosta’s press pass, and, for good measure, falsely accused him of manhandling the aide who wanted the mike back.
    — Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2026
  • He was brought to the prison infirmary, where numerous guards surrounded, punched, kicked, choked, dropped and manhandled him.
    — Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of manhandle
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.

Browse Nearby Words

roughs (up)
rough (up)
rouging
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rough (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rough%20%28up%29. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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