roughnecks

noun

plural of roughneck
as in thugs
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

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of roughnecks The show focuses on roughnecks and billionaires in West Texas who are trying to get rich as the oil industry continues to take over the state. — Lori A Bashian, FOXNews.com, 9 May 2026 But this is a look at the more dynamic version, like the roughnecks out in the patch and the offices in Dallas and Fort Worth. — Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 17 Nov. 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roughnecks
  1. thugs
  2. criminals
  3. gangsters
  4. bandits
  5. pirates
  6. villains
  7. toughs
Noun
  • The eponymous former assassin is drawn back into the game after some thugs (led by Alfie Allen) kill his dog and royally piss him off.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Shortly after his big win, he’s attacked by two thugs in a parking garage.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 30 July 2026
Definition of thugs
Noun
  • Throughout the bar are blurbs of information on cases and criminals, researched by Rose and the team.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 29 Aug. 2026
  • When criminals are behind bars, their victims should finally be safe from them.
    — Caden Perry, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of criminals
Noun
  • The bodies start piling up – and business booms – but the growing enterprise puts the trio in the crosshairs of the powerful gangsters and underworld figures in the lawless border town of Saribgunj.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Duane Keith Davis is accused of orchestrating Shakur’s killing in September 1996, and the lore of other rappers and gangsters looms large over his trial.
    — Aditi Sangal, CNN Money, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of gangsters
Noun
  • Analysts warn each ransom payment fuels more crime as armed groups, from rural bandits to Islamist militants, raid schools, mosques and villages, with an average of 21 kidnappings reported daily.
    — Dyepkazah Shibayan, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The Brigands of Rattlecreek follows a sheriff and a doctor who seek revenge against a group of bandits who use the cover of a torrential thunderstorm to rob and terrorize the occupants of a small town.
    — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of bandits
Noun
  • Speaking of singing pirates, Curry clearly fancied these kinds of roles, signing on to play the villainous Long John Silver in Muppet Treasure Island (1996), Brian Henson’s musical adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 26 Aug. 2026
  • That is up from Politico’s report that Somali pirates had seized at least three tankers carrying oil and fertilizer since April, while a chemical-carrying ship was hijacked off Yemen in July.
    — Joshua Hong, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of pirates
Noun
  • The ’90s were an era of event villains, characters who came preinstalled with their own company-wide impact.
    — Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Anthony Hopkins has played villains and popes, presidents and dictators, titans of literature and comic book kings.
    — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of villains
Noun
  • In that version, the character is played by Joe Don Baker, the great character actor known for playing toughs in films like Walking Tall (1973) and Fletch (1985).
    — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 5 June 2026
  • So, while Rue and Maddy are confabbing over milkshakes in a diner, Alamo sends Rue off for a drive with his two toughs, G (Marshawn Lynch) and the icy Bishop (Darrell Britt-Gibson).
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 11 May 2026
Definition of toughs

Browse Nearby Words

roughneck
roughnecks
roughness
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Cite this Entry

“Roughnecks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughnecks. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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