as in criminals
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
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Recent Examples of thugs
The thugs would insinuate themselves into the confidence of wayfarers and, when a favorable opportunity presented itself, strangle them by throwing a handkerchief or noose around their necks.
—
Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Mar. 2026
No government masked thugs shooting down our neighbors in the streets.
—Diego Parrado, Vanity Fair, 29 Mar. 2026
No government masked thugs shooting down our neighbors in the streets.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 28 Mar. 2026
Suddenly Odin gets a call telling him Korps leader Attila (Eili Harboe) and her thugs are on their way to finish the job.
—K.j. Yossman, Variety, 27 Mar. 2026
The new Homeland Security person needs to unmask the thugs causing harm to families and innocent children.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 15 Mar. 2026
The centerpiece is, of course, the melee/dance-off between the ensemble in white tutus and the violent thugs, toe blade and all.
—Lé Baltar, IndieWire, 14 Mar. 2026
The Democrats, though, have no problems releasing all these bloodthirsty thugs back into the neighborhood.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 4 Mar. 2026
In a season 3 teaser, Peter saves Suraj Sharma's Jay Batra from some thugs at a soccer stadium.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Feb. 2026
Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Mar. 2026
No government masked thugs shooting down our neighbors in the streets.
—Diego Parrado, Vanity Fair, 29 Mar. 2026
No government masked thugs shooting down our neighbors in the streets.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 28 Mar. 2026
Suddenly Odin gets a call telling him Korps leader Attila (Eili Harboe) and her thugs are on their way to finish the job.
—K.j. Yossman, Variety, 27 Mar. 2026
The new Homeland Security person needs to unmask the thugs causing harm to families and innocent children.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 15 Mar. 2026
The centerpiece is, of course, the melee/dance-off between the ensemble in white tutus and the violent thugs, toe blade and all.
—Lé Baltar, IndieWire, 14 Mar. 2026
The Democrats, though, have no problems releasing all these bloodthirsty thugs back into the neighborhood.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 4 Mar. 2026
In a season 3 teaser, Peter saves Suraj Sharma's Jay Batra from some thugs at a soccer stadium.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thugs
Noun
-
The scheme is designed to identify suspected criminals, combat identity fraud, and to police the EU's limit on 90-day stays within a 180-day period, according to the European Commission.—
Emma Clarke,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Rex Heuermann, the man known as the Gilgo Beach killer, admitted to killing eight women over a span of decades, and the FBI is now looking into what motivated the 62-year-old to carry out his crimes to help capture other criminals in the future.—
Matt Lavietes,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Violent gangsters ran fentanyl and human smuggling over the Rio Grande.—
Ioan Grillo,
Time,
15 Apr. 2026
-
They get captured by Hungarian gangsters and have to fight (and kill) their way out of an inn run by a shady former dance prodigy (Uma Thurman).—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There are flying cars held at bay by the power of telekenesis and Park teleporting, as the crew clumsily accept their new ‘hero’ roles and attempt to take on the villains threatening the peace of Haeseong City.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
22 Apr. 2026
-
The playoffs have delivered their share of Knicks villains over the years, from Reggie Miller to Joel Embiid to Tyrese Haliburton.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
An unusual theft at a Pennsylvania Wawa has police going bananas for a pair of potassium bandits.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
8 Apr. 2026
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Set against mountainous landscapes and rural lakes, the story follows a wandering swordsman who is falsely accused of stealing a shipment of gold and must unravel a web of intrigue involving bandits, palace guards and corrupt officials while attempting to clear his name.—
Lin Ying-Hsuan,
Variety,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
No wonder all these characters wanted to become assassins, Scott implies; they’re removed from reality by so many orders of magnitude that living, breathing fellow humans are just blurry images.—
Theater Critic,
San Francisco Chronicle,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Mirrors were such a precious commodity in the heyday of the Venetian Republic that the assassins were dispatched to, well, dispatch any defectors who left La Serenissima and tried to take the secrets of creating that mesmerizing, reflective surface along with them.—
Mark Ellwood,
Robb Report,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The first pictures McCullin took were of hoodlums and down-and-outs, subjects that reflected his own hardscrabble background.—
Andrew Pulver,
Air Mail,
31 Jan. 2026
-
Aleah and Grasso end up saving Lizzie’s ass and capturing the hoodlums.—
Grace Byron,
Vulture,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The grandkids — cousins, and thick as thieves — love running around indoors and out.—
Jeanne Phillips,
Mercury News,
19 Apr. 2026
-
The owners of a beloved Monrovia burger joint are asking for help after thieves broke into their home and stole their entire life savings of $140,000.—
Nicole Comstock,
CBS News,
18 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Iran has gone from having the most lethal navy in the Middle East to now acting like a bunch of pirates.—
Charbel Mallo,
CNN Money,
22 Apr. 2026
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And some influencers say the new clip from Supergirl was good — Kara on a space-bus full of aliens who get attacked by pirates, with a Guardians of the Galaxy vibe.—
James Hibberd,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Thugs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thugs. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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