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
Relevance
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
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
Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roughnecks
Noun
-
Their neighbor, an older Jewish woman, gets arrested and Nazi thugs brazenly loot her apartment.—
Rabih Alameddine
September 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Sep. 2025
-
As night falls, armed thugs roam the streets and families pick up guns to protect themselves.—
Oren Liebermann,
CNN Money,
24 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Our research suggests that the vast majority of Republican voters want to close loopholes that allow criminals and dangerous people to get their hands on guns.—
Gabby Giffords,
Time,
11 Sep. 2025
-
The days of letting dangerous criminals terrorize American citizens are over.—
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
There’s also a tropical storm circulating, as if the gangsters flew in from the tropics.—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Others are new, building on a genuinely fresh and funny revelation that explains not only a cold open involving yakuza gangsters half a world away in Osaka, but also why this quaint town is sitting on a stash of weaponry big enough to overthrow the governments of several small nations.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Over $200 Off NFL Sunday Ticket NFL fans can make out like bandits with the DraftKings Sportsbook welcome offer.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern were cast as the bumbling but dogged bandits, Harry and Marv, and Catherine O’Hara brought humor and compassion to the part of Kevin’s mother.—
Tim Greiving,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Plana played one of the two main villains in Three Amigos.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
9 Sep. 2025
-
There are true and proper villains (Mordred, Morgan Le Fay).—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
That’s when Billy, a conman serving a debt of service to the pirates, burst through the crowd, yelling at the blaster men.—
Manuel Muñoz,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
-
For decades, the characters in science-fiction movies and TV shows who traveled on spaceships tended to be scientists, explorers, diplomats, soldiers, and pirates.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The local toughs, led by the sadistic Ace Merrill (Kiefer Sutherland), are headed the same way, albeit for different reasons.—
Sezin Devi Koehler September 1,
EW.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Roughnecks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughnecks. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share