roughing (up)

verb

present participle of rough (up)
1
as in licking
to strike repeatedly she was badly roughed up by her boxing partner

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in abusing
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 roughing (up)
  1. licking
  2. abusing
  3. pounding
  4. attacking
  5. hiding
  6. manhandling
  7. lashing
  8. mauling
Verb
  • Signs paws have already been burned include limping, refusing to walk, licking or chewing feet, darker or damaged pads and visible blisters or redness.
    — Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 9 July 2026
  • But the Carolinas have their own ways of making barbecue finger-licking.
    — Amethyst Ganaway, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 July 2026
Definition of licking
Verb
  • Four people represented by the ACLU of Tennessee filed a lawsuit in May accusing the task force of abusing the law to block them from documenting officers’ actions, sometimes ordering them to stay more than 100 feet away from arrest scenes.
    — Andy Rose, CNN Money, 10 July 2026
  • Two Miami-Dade church camp counselors were arrested Wednesday for allegedly abusing a 9-year-old boy by placing large orange cones over his head and repeatedly hitting him, according to the sheriff’s office.
    — Sofia Saric, Miami Herald, 9 July 2026
Definition of abusing
Verb
  • America is better when Paul Skenes is embarrassing hitters with Livvy in the stands pounding Miller Lites.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 3 July 2026
  • The heart-pounding encounter ended with the calf reunited with its mother, dramatic photos on a cellphone — and the couple continuing on to catch brook trout.
    — Kate Brumback, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026
Definition of pounding
Verb
  • Electing to keep his No 5 on the field, the Brazil head coach made a subtle tactical tweak that saw Endrick enter the action and brought Matheus Cunha further to the left flank — which unlocked the attacking prowess of Vinicius Junior.
    — Mark Carey, New York Times, 6 July 2026
  • In patients with type 1 diabetes, the immune system starts attacking the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.
    — The Week UK, TheWeek, 6 July 2026
Definition of attacking
Verb
  • Failing to disclose or intentionally hiding assets can make a prenup more vulnerable to being challenged in court.
    — Jasmin Suknanan, CNBC, 6 July 2026
  • The find suggests one of NASA’s most successful planet hunters may still have plenty of surprises hiding in its archives.
    — Sam Macdonald, Scientific American, 6 July 2026
Definition of hiding
Verb
  • But this year’s edition could be the best one yet, and the Wolverines will get a chance to prove that next week in Indianapolis after manhandling Tennessee 95-62 yesterday at the United Center to clinch a spot in the Final Four.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
  • The Illini literally soaked in the celebration Thursday night after manhandling hometown favorite Houston to advance to the Elite 8 for the second time in three years.
    — Ryan Baker, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
Definition of manhandling
Verb
  • Back at the dilapidated family home, Edgar grows even surlier, lashing into gentle-natured Joe for being an under-achiever compared to his brother and causing Thya to become apprehensive about Ed’s proximity to sharp objects.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2026
  • Unfortunately, this can lead to some individuals lashing out in response to their own insecurities, hate and low bar of aptitude, which is confirmed by the tenor of the attacks.
    — Jallicia Jolly, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of lashing
Verb
  • Another hiker survived a grizzly mauling on the popular Grinnell Glacier Trail just weeks later.
    — Amber Harding OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 June 2026
  • Chris Brown was seated at the defense table in a Los Angeles courtroom on Tuesday, poised to testify at his dog-mauling trial, when the judge declared a mistrial due to juror misconduct.
    — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 16 June 2026
Definition of mauling
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

roughing it
roughing (up)
rough it
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Roughing (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughing%20%28up%29. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All