as in gangster
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the Mob boss regularly sent his thugs after people who were slow to pay their debts
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of thug
But throwing out our precious rights and freedoms, and allowing masked, unidentified thugs to roam our streets detaining people at will is absolutely not the answer.
—
Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 June 2025
In an empty warehouse somewhere, McKenna leaves Stabler alone with Vincent Mathis, Emery’s thug.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 12 June 2025
Ultra Man is sort of Lex's thug, and is pretty powerful.
—EW.com, 10 June 2025
The offers come not just from thugs but also from people who are supposed to be on his team—his fellow officers.
—Bruce Tulgan, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for thug
Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 June 2025
In an empty warehouse somewhere, McKenna leaves Stabler alone with Vincent Mathis, Emery’s thug.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 12 June 2025
Ultra Man is sort of Lex's thug, and is pretty powerful.
—EW.com, 10 June 2025
The offers come not just from thugs but also from people who are supposed to be on his team—his fellow officers.
—Bruce Tulgan, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for thug
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thug
Noun
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Alfredo’s lifelong business partner and small-time gangster Annibale (Marco Giallini) even sees it as his chance to ask Lorella on a date.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
8 July 2025
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Where to watch: Tubi 'Sinners' Ryan Coogler's sinfully good period musical gangster vampire horror flick is one of the best movies of the year, period.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
5 July 2025
Noun
-
Recently, however, the technology has been used by criminals for purposes of sextortion.—
Steve Weisman,
Forbes.com,
5 July 2025
-
But with this bill, Republicans are laying the groundwork to gut safeguards that stopped criminals from getting these deadly weapons.—
Khaleda Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 July 2025
Noun
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Two of the game’s most brilliant villains have matured into eloquent eulogists.—
Simon Vozick-Levinson,
Rolling Stone,
30 June 2025
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For an industry which has long been treated by the television and film industries as a dirty, dangerous business run by unethical, cartoon-ish villains like J.R. Ewing, such a balanced portrayal is a welcome change, indeed.—
David Blackmon,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2025
Noun
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In the twilight of her career, Parker still showed flashes of the once baby-haired assassin who shook up the WNBA.—
Anthony De Leon,
Los Angeles Times,
29 June 2025
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The Day of the Jackal follows a professional British assassin called the Jackal (Eddie Redmayne), known only for his ruthless and mysterious methods, and Bianca Pullman (Lashana Lynch), an MI6 agent intent on hunting him down.—
Ryan Fleming,
Deadline,
19 June 2025
Noun
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To make matters even worse, snow pirates, survivalists, bandits, the colonial military force NEVEC, and other factions are fighting over land and resources.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
27 June 2025
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But the project is also right at home for Laika, as it’s set in a secret forest just outside of Laika’s home in Portland and follows a girl whose baby brother is taken into the forest, only to discover an exotic world of talking animals and bandits.—
Brian Welk,
IndieWire,
25 June 2025
Noun
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Fortunately for her, there’s work to be found: a gang of thieves is assembling a crew to steal a precious necklace from the Ministry itself.—
Caroline Carlson
June 30,
Literary Hub,
30 June 2025
-
After a den of thieves ransacked a rural Northern California home so many times that the owner fled in fear, the property fell into even wilder hands: a group of bears, authorities said.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
28 June 2025
Noun
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Sir Jimmy Crystal gives deeply unsettling vibes from the get-go, and while his bizarre gang of hoodlums do save Spike’s life, it’s implied that Spike may have wandered into a much worse situation.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
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Critics say police gave up when the rioting erupted in 1992, letting big chunks of the city burn while looters and hoodlums ruled.—
Seema Mehta,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2025
Noun
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However, the very same ruling condemned Anthropic for its alternative sourcing method: using pirate websites.—
Douglas B. Laney,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2025
-
To make matters even worse, snow pirates, survivalists, bandits, the colonial military force NEVEC, and other factions are fighting over land and resources.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
27 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Thug.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thug. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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