1
as in licked
to strike repeatedly
she was badly roughed up by her boxing partner
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in abused
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 roughed (up)
Verb
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Just hours before Saturday morning’s Shabbat service, flames and smoke licked through the synagogue, destroying at least two Torahs and many prayer books.—
Bracey Harris,
NBC news,
14 Jan. 2026 -
When asked by director Marina Zenovich if there was a time when Chase walked away from his mother and stepfather and never saw them again, Chase pretended to swat a fly on his forehead, then licked his fingers as if eating the imaginary bug.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
2 Jan. 2026
Verb
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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
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Others abused the hospitality, & winded up having to actually be evicted from the property.—
Cheyenne Derksen,
Oklahoman,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The Celtics pounded the paint with Neemias Queta and Luka Garza, a pair of bruising bigs who also can force the issue from 3-point range despite their lumbering dispositions.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Jan. 2026
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Trump seems to have arrived, on his own, at the same understanding of geography and politics that was pounded into the heads of Soviet schoolchildren, including Putin and me.—
M. Gessen,
Mercury News,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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One study in 2020 surveyed 261 herders in Mongolia, another common habitat for snow leopards; while many reported having seen snow leopards, or had their livestock attacked by snow leopards, none reported any attacks on humans.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
27 Jan. 2026
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The upstream piranhas attacked her, and her blood flowing downstream attracted the rest of the piranhas, leaving the creek clear for the herd to cross.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But Johnson, who won a pair of Super Bowl championships with the Cowboys, lashed out at Spygate being the reason for Belichick not being selected.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
28 Jan. 2026
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This is far from the first time the White House has lashed out at the cohosts of The View.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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From the first-quarter red-zone stand to the fourth-quarter strip sack that left Justin Herbert twisted, bloodied and dazed, the Patriots defense manhandled the Los Angeles Chargers in the teams’ wild-card playoff matchup.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
12 Jan. 2026
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Before his team manhandled Miami, Vrabel gave voice to this during a pregame radio interview when answering if the Patriots might rest starters in order to preserve their health for the playoffs.—
Andrew Callahan,
Hartford Courant,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In an unlit room, the children are whipped and verbally chastized.—
Blake Simons,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
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Mountains of snow accumulated in drifts, whipped by winds of 50 mph or more.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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While refusing to fight for the Confederacy and trying to reach safety in Mexico, the group was ambushed by Confederate soldiers on horseback in the 1862 Battle of the Nueces, also called the Nueces massacre.—
Alexis Simmerman,
Austin American Statesman,
10 Jan. 2026
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The Colorado Avalanche ambushed the Ottawa Senators’ goaltenders so badly Thursday night, the visitors signed a new one in the middle of the game.—
Corey Masisak,
Denver Post,
9 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Roughed (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughed%20%28up%29. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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