Thesaurus results for ROUGHNECKS

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

Noun

That a Christian man was responsible for the devastation in Oklahoma City certainly didn’t matter to the thugs who terrorized a Muslim woman there, nearly seven months pregnant, by attacking her home, breaking her windows, screaming religious slurs.

— Reshma Memon Yaqub, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
Some of the thugs were actual neo-Nazis, led by real-life Russian fascist Maksim Martsinkevich, who would later be imprisoned for posting racist videos, investigated for murder and, in 2020, found dead in his cell of an apparent suicide.

— Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of thugs

Noun

Removing violent criminals, gang members, cartel members and those who refuse to work is wise and popular policy.

— Don Bacon, Washington Post, 25 Sep. 2026
Americans have demonized us as criminals, buffoons, lechers, invaders, criminals and job stealers since the fall of the Alamo.

— Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of criminals

Noun

Somebody like Gilroy or Jeff Kober and Barry Corbin (popping up occasionally as a pair of geriatric gangsters) will come and go in situations knowingly designed to feel contrived.

— Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 23 Sep. 2026
And the next thing, a knock come at the door and these gangsters come in with guns.

— Jon Wertheim, CBS News, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of gangsters

Noun

When a wealthy, royal woman is attacked by bandits, the two men save her and are welcomed to the castle as valiant knights.

— Jourdain Searles, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2026
Elsewhere, a gang of highway bandits cons an unsuspecting family into stopping by the roadside, only to violently kill them, burn their bodies, and strip their car for parts.

— Siddhant Adlakha, IndieWire, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of bandits

Noun

Their journey brings them into conflict with pirates seeking control of the sacred water on which their community depends.

— Ed Meza, Variety, 18 Sep. 2026
Knights in shining armor, pirates and princesses grace the grounds of Sleepy Hollow for the annual Renaissance Faire in Des Moines.

— Kyle Werner, Des Moines Register, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of pirates

Noun

The way it’s framed, both the heroes and the villains can only come from the tech community.

— Rumman Chowdhury, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 2026
There aren’t any villains here, just young people making young people mistakes and older people making older people mistakes.

— Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 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

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roughneck

roughnecks

roughness

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“Roughnecks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughnecks. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of roughnecks

noun

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