as in roughhousing
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
their parents simply wouldn't tolerate any roughhouse in the living room
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to wrestle
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of roughhouse
Dorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 14 June 2024
Her powers of observation miss nothing: roughhousing children, bickering adults, pets scampering underfoot.
—Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 1 Feb. 2024
Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 2 Dec. 2021
Chewy orecchiette roughhouse with big hunks of sausage and broccolini, enrobed in a rich goat cheese fonduta.
—Dominic Armato, azcentral, 16 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for roughhouse
Noun
These inflatable body bumpers do just that while also ensuring that kiddos don’t get hurt while roughhousing in the backyard, park, or beach.
—Dorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 14 June 2024
Her powers of observation miss nothing: roughhousing children, bickering adults, pets scampering underfoot.
—Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 1 Feb. 2024
Verb
Phil bitterly watches from a distance while his fellow cowhands roughhouse, bathe together and chase prostitutes at a local saloon.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 2 Dec. 2021
Chewy orecchiette roughhouse with big hunks of sausage and broccolini, enrobed in a rich goat cheese fonduta.
—Dominic Armato, azcentral, 16 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for roughhouse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roughhouse
Verb
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The reticence around jumping on the Mamdani train has highlighted an identity crisis of sorts playing out inside the party as its leaders wrestle with whether the 33-year-old Queens Assembly member is a model for the future of Democratic party politics.—
Chris Sommerfeldt,
New York Daily News,
12 Aug. 2025
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Throughout the episode, Conrad wrestled with his romantic feelings for Belly.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
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In the meantime, the shark's meat has been cut up, filleted and put in coolers to be shared with friends and family, his wife Cynthia told ABC News.—
Megan Forrester,
ABC News,
7 Aug. 2025
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Fiscally, the bill aimed to provide 39 million households tax cuts up to $3,600 by expanding the Child Tax Credit.—
Mandy Taheri,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 July 2025
Verb
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The filing points to other high-profile instances when CDCR employees were harassed, threatened and mistreated by other officers.—
William Melhado,
Sacbee.com,
4 Aug. 2025
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However, an article in The Sunday Times has accused the king of mistreating gardeners employed by his charity, The King's Foundation, which manages the estate's gardens.—
Jack Royston,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 July 2025
Verb
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Many foreign attendees at San Fermín have no stomach for the spectacle and spend their early evenings carousing in local bars instead.—
Tony Perrottet,
Smithsonian Magazine,
30 June 2025
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These increasingly crazed visitors spend their days lazing on the shore, drinking and eating, carousing with prostitutes, and abusing Rosa (played by B-movie actress Leonora Fani, who would also star in the equally notorious vacation film Giallo in Venice) for their own entertainment.—
Erik Morse,
Vogue,
26 June 2025
Noun
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Butch Baker, who was Henry County sheriff until 2014, recalled an incident in which Bertram was accused of inappropriate horseplay at the community corrections office.—
Tony Cook,
IndyStar,
2 July 2025
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The action anime feature for everyone who couldn’t get enough of the horseplay in The Two Towers has finally cantered onto Max.—
Savannah Salazar,
Vulture,
1 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The subject was always the same: Goldie had slugged, punched, beaten, scratched, or pummelled another student.—
Annie Proulx,
New Yorker,
10 Aug. 2025
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Nearly four months have passed since the Trump administration abruptly froze $790 million in federal funding at Northwestern University, and the school’s fragile research infrastructure has been pummeled by cuts.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The pie shoved in Anthony’s face by his lover, Giuseppe, felt like a neat distillation of how crudely the series seemed to clown its characters, week after week after week.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
15 Aug. 2025
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Fans are clowning back at their favorite pop star's showmanship.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Those who wish to revel without reservation in good feelings about their country feel threatened by those who note the tragedies and oppression that lay at the heart of this period.—
ANNETTE GORDON-REED,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Dec. 2017
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And there are the neighbors who revel at the many nicknames coined for the spot.—
Lauren Brensel,
Sun Sentinel,
17 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Roughhouse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughhouse. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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