1
as in clumsy
hastily or roughly constructed
a survivalist living in a rough-hewn shelter in the wilderness
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in crass
lacking in refinement or good taste
a rough-hewn kid who had to learn how to behave properly in polite company
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in uncomfortable
lacking social grace and assurance
rough-hewn military cadets feeling a little self-conscious at their first formal dance
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rough-hewn
Like the industrial-chic public spaces, guest rooms also have exposed brick, rough-hewn wood, and steel surfaces.
—
Heather Greenwood Davis, AFAR Media, 16 July 2025
The guest house provides an additional three extra bedrooms and two bathrooms, while the nearby log cabin is perfectly integrated with the wild Montana terrain, its vaulted ceilings and rough-hewn log walls echoing the untamed spirit of the landscape.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 12 July 2025
By my front door there is a rough-hewn statue of St. Francis made from a tree stump.
—Judy Knotts, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025
The Belgian master of minimalism and wabi-sabi forever changed the design of sofas, and his way with rough-hewn wood furniture and beams, pale linen, an earthy palette, and a masterful blending of East and West and antique and contemporary are now canonized among professionals.
—Amy Astley, Architectural Digest, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for rough-hewn
Heather Greenwood Davis, AFAR Media, 16 July 2025
The guest house provides an additional three extra bedrooms and two bathrooms, while the nearby log cabin is perfectly integrated with the wild Montana terrain, its vaulted ceilings and rough-hewn log walls echoing the untamed spirit of the landscape.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 12 July 2025
By my front door there is a rough-hewn statue of St. Francis made from a tree stump.
—Judy Knotts, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025
The Belgian master of minimalism and wabi-sabi forever changed the design of sofas, and his way with rough-hewn wood furniture and beams, pale linen, an earthy palette, and a masterful blending of East and West and antique and contemporary are now canonized among professionals.
—Amy Astley, Architectural Digest, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for rough-hewn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rough-hewn
Adjective
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For starters, even at 4 mm by 4 mm, the Utah array would be too big and clumsy a hunk of hardware for Science to implant in the eye or Synchron to thread through a vein.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
6 Nov. 2025
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What resulted is one of the most comic, counterproductive, and clumsy episodes in the long history of British efforts to deal with Ireland.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Each project presented at MIA is picked with a genuine desire for these works to come to the fore, not by crass commercial considerations.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Free speech covers the jokes, the satire, the parodies—even the dumb, crass, or offensive ones.—
Lizz Winstead,
Time,
27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
My seat is hard and uncomfortable.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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Whoever dispatched that ambulance might be one of many employees at the Department of Emergency Communications who have felt uncomfortable, yelled at and trapped between their calling to help people and what several current and former dispatchers have called a hostile work environment.—
Kirsten Fiscus,
Nashville Tennessean,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Other government notices mentioned the size and rough location of the construction.—
Tamara Qiblawi,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
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Yams tend to be white fleshed with a rough, brown exterior.—
Paul Cappiello,
Louisville Courier Journal,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Who decides what’s decorous and what’s vulgar?—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
25 Oct. 2025
-
The president has been targeting Jeffries online with offensive and vulgar memes since the pair first had an unsuccessful sit-down meeting in the Oval Office just before the shutdown.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
9 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Rather than offering peace of mind from pest invasion, the chemical control process often leaves families feeling uneasy about what has been introduced so indiscriminately into their environment.—
Malana VanTyler,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
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Cuomo led early polls, buoyed by name recognition and a coalition of moderate Democrats uneasy with the party’s leftward drift.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Big Oil leaders Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and Shell continue to hike their crude oil production volumes from West Texas’s Permian Basin to the Gulf of Mexico to deepwater Guyana despite concerns of a rising global oil glut as OPEC nations keep exporting more barrels each month.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
31 Oct. 2025
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Burke gave the only 9 on a panel full of 10s, prompting the crude call out.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Combined with not intervening too often, this will minimize the number of rude responses.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
29 Oct. 2025
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Basil, of course, is far from perfect, a rude, neurotic, accident-prone manager who insults guests, hides his gambling winnings from his wife and organizes an elaborate impersonation of her when his surprise anniversary party backfires.—
Rhett Bartlett,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rough-hewn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rough-hewn. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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