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
  • That means no tasting cookie dough made with raw eggs, no licking brownie batter off the beaters, and no homemade Caesar dressing made with uncooked yolks.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 23 July 2026
  • The best restaurant sauces can tempt even the most prim and proper of us to lift up our plates and lick them clean.
    — Rochelle Bilow, Bon Appetit Magazine, 22 July 2026
Definition of lick
Verb
  • When Platner arrived, the place seemed haunted not only by American misconduct but also by Saddam Hussein’s use of it to imprison and abuse political dissidents during his reign.
    — Jasper Craven, New Yorker, 24 July 2026
  • To overturn the trial court's decision would require an appellate court to find that the trial court abused its discretion ― which is a very high bar to hurdle.
    — Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of abuse
Verb
  • The tree in Athens isn’t likely to make it through the construction of a new $225 million courthouse, despite some interest in preserving the piece of history hiding in plain sight.
    — Cassidy Alexander, AJC.com, 23 July 2026
  • The tinkerer believes there is always another possibility hiding beneath the surface of failure.
    — Lintao "LT" Lu, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of hide
Verb
  • Investigators determined that a group of men had attacked him at his San Jose home and that one of them struck him in the face with the handle of a firearm, police said.
    — Molly Gibbs, Mercury News, 21 July 2026
  • Refineries are maxed out, especially after Iran attacked 30 Middle Eastern refineries during the course of the war.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 21 July 2026
Definition of attack
Verb
  • Ukraine continues to pound Putin's energy assets, taking some Russian oil refining offline.
    — Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 23 July 2026
  • But the Thai-style of salad—a combination of sour (som) and pounded ingredients (tam)—can be applied to a wide array of produce.
    — Jesse Szewczyk, Bon Appetit Magazine, 22 July 2026
Definition of pound
Verb
  • The military convoy was leaving the northern town of Anefis and headed to Gao city when it was ambushed in the Sahara desert.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 July 2026
  • Nolan’s film has Telemachus and his trusted advisor, Mentor (Ryan Hurst), ambushed by the suitors at a temple dedicated to Apollo.
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 17 July 2026
Definition of ambush
Verb
  • Iran’s foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, also lashed out at Ukraine’s leader, Volodymyr Zelensky.
    — Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 27 July 2026
  • Some lashed out at United’s fan representatives — volunteers who have been working behind the scenes to try to help.
    — Andy Mitten, New York Times, 22 July 2026
Definition of lash
Verb
  • 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
  • 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
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 27 Jul. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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