as in vulgar
lacking in refinement or good taste
their roughneck antics were amusing only if you were as drunk as they were
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
a group of roughnecks like to hang out at the roadhouse and harass people
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of roughneck
Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 10 June 2025
Where was Benn, their leader and roughneck captain, when Evan Bouchard gave Hintz a dirty slash on the top of his foot — in the exact same place Darnell Nurse injured him and cost him a game and a half — in Game 4?
—Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 30 May 2025
Alyssa Shelasky, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Sep. 2025
Local agency Legacy Casting is putting out a call for real-life oil and gas workers, or roughnecks, to appear in the show.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for roughneck
Adjective
Solomon’s estranged roughneck father (Chris Bauer) hawks macho health supplements and scams Solomon into becoming one of his salesmen.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 10 June 2025
Where was Benn, their leader and roughneck captain, when Evan Bouchard gave Hintz a dirty slash on the top of his foot — in the exact same place Darnell Nurse injured him and cost him a game and a half — in Game 4?
—Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 30 May 2025
Noun
Before meeting us, Sam filmed a food series in Trieste that left him wanting more; Hazel takes Italian at an after-school program; and River, our yummy 5-year old roughneck, is aptly nicknamed Tony Soprano.
—Alyssa Shelasky, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Sep. 2025
Local agency Legacy Casting is putting out a call for real-life oil and gas workers, or roughnecks, to appear in the show.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for roughneck
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roughneck
Adjective
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When authorities asked King to remove the breast banner as vulgar, King taped over the nipples with stars made of tape or Magic Marker.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
3 Feb. 2026
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Sarah, the former Duchess of York, also sent emails to Epstein which included a vulgar mention of Eugenie, who had not yet turned 20 at the time, People reported.—
Rachel Burchfield,
InStyle,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In a season 3 teaser, Peter saves Suraj Sharma's Jay Batra from some thugs at a soccer stadium.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Feb. 2026
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Foucauld had later left the army to become a Trappist monk and had established himself as a missionary in Tamanrasset, Algeria, in the middle of the Sahara Desert; he was killed there by local thugs in 1916.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The vigil can come to look like voyeurism, the human care made crass.—
Megan Garber,
The Atlantic,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Funny and silly without being crass or gross.—
Omar L. Gallaga,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The gangster drama began airing on BBC Two in the UK in 2013, and debuted on Netflix a year later.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
19 Feb. 2026
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The sequel finds the notorious gangster back in Birmingham in 1940, racing to save his son.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The deranged demeanor accompanying her rude responses under oath deserves an Oscar nomination in the cringe and horror categories.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
21 Feb. 2026
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But there are also things that are just kind of, 'Well, that’s rude.—
Emma Banks,
InStyle,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill, ICE has new funding to expand detention space to keep these criminals off American streets before they are removed for good from our communities.—
Jeff Capellini,
CBS News,
20 Feb. 2026
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His office is more concerned about arresting police officers than prosecuting criminals.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Even the Dodgers, the cartoon villains of spending, kind of sort of have a limit.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
18 Feb. 2026
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And Salieri seems more of hybrid creature, as though a villain out of Christopher Marlowe had suddenly been endowed with Shakespearean self-awareness.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Cut in the 3 tbsp of butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.—
Sarah Martens,
Better Homes & Gardens,
17 Feb. 2026
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Thick or coarse hair becomes more controlled without needing grease or gel.—
Justin Fenner,
Robb Report,
16 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Roughneck.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughneck. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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