as in boisterous
being rough or noisy in a high-spirited way
a rowdy but good-natured group of teenagers
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
rowdies had overtaken the neighborhood and were threatening people on the street
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rowdy
Ashlyn Robinette, PEOPLE, 28 Jan. 2026
One of them is the restless, rowdy, often crude and chaotic but ultimately irresistible force that Alexis de Tocqueville called democracy.
—Walter Russell Mead, The Atlantic, 24 Jan. 2026
Simmons was among many rowdy UM fans tailgating.
—Sofia Saric, Miami Herald, 20 Jan. 2026
Resigned to sleeping outside, Dunk also manages to sneak into a party held by the rowdy Ser Lyonel Baratheon (Daniel Ings) to scrape together some food and catches the eye of a cute puppeteer named Tanselle (Tanzyn Crawford).
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 19 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rowdy
Adjective
Based on the nearly 1,000 comments, most TikTok users found the rowdy ritual to be hilarious — and confusing.
—Ashlyn Robinette, PEOPLE, 28 Jan. 2026
One of them is the restless, rowdy, often crude and chaotic but ultimately irresistible force that Alexis de Tocqueville called democracy.
—Walter Russell Mead, The Atlantic, 24 Jan. 2026
Simmons was among many rowdy UM fans tailgating.
—Sofia Saric, Miami Herald, 20 Jan. 2026
Resigned to sleeping outside, Dunk also manages to sneak into a party held by the rowdy Ser Lyonel Baratheon (Daniel Ings) to scrape together some food and catches the eye of a cute puppeteer named Tanselle (Tanzyn Crawford).
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 19 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for rowdy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rowdy
Adjective
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Well up for the fight in front of their boisterous fans at the Estadio da Luz, however, Benfica went ahead 3-1 before half time and secured a heroic 4-2 win, plus qualification to the knockout phase playoff on goal difference, thanks to goalkeeper Anatoli Trubin’s 98th minute header.—
Tom Sanderson,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce could get an up-close look at the boisterous behavior next week.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Minnesotans, not the armed thugs of ICE and the Border Patrol, are brave.—
Adam Serwer,
The Atlantic,
27 Jan. 2026
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Actively inserting yourself into and attempting to stymie federal law enforcement or barging into a church, as some of these thugs did in Minneapolis, is hindering law enforcement and trespassing, respectively.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Anderson faced criticism online after his raucous menswear collection, shown during the men’s shows in Paris earlier this month, divided audiences.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
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What Don’t Be Dumb does effectively, however, is reestablish Rocky’s auteur-ish tendencies for 2020s hip-hop, drawing throughline between his mixtape days and the raucous, rage-minded sounds that course through much of contemporary rap.—
Carl Lamarre,
Billboard,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Immigration and Integration Minister Rasmus Stoklund said 315 foreign criminals from countries outside the European Union had received sentences of more than a year over the last five years but were not expelled.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
31 Jan. 2026
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The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment, but officials there have broadly defended the department’s actions as not only justified but necessary for ensuring the rule of law and holding alleged criminals to account.—
Kevin Rector,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Wallace’s piscine material is much more successful in this rambunctious, dynamic, take-it-or-leave-it novelistic form than in his fish-out-of-water public performance, years later, before the class of 2005.—
Hermione Hoby,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
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The rambunctious 4-year-old – who loved mud and getting dressed up and having dance parties with her brother and sisters – died January 6, after the flu and a co-infection with an adenovirus turned into pneumonia and sepsis.—
Brenda Goodman,
CNN Money,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Meanwhile, a running back on the underdog 49ers will find the sledding tough on the ground, providing gamblers with a desirable rushing under to bet.—
Josh Shepardson,
Forbes.com,
16 Jan. 2026
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Doing so with a CVS receipt-long injury list is all kinds of tough.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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But smart casting, witty writing, lively directing, and artful character development have also yielded the rare superhero riff that, as Kovak puts it, finds the human underneath.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
26 Jan. 2026
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For 30 minutes, the producers mostly paint with a warm, lively palette, whisking fragments of IDM, ghettotech, and house into a hypnotic swirl.—
Rae-Aila Crumble,
Pitchfork,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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In 1991, Pesci won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of real-life gangster Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas.—
Sophie Dodd,
PEOPLE,
31 Jan. 2026
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His acting run continued in August with a role as a gangster in Caught Stealing, which, while less commercially successful, provided another strong entry in Bad Bunny’s growing film portfolio.—
Isabela Raygoza,
Billboard,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rowdy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rowdy. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
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