as in vulgar
lacking in refinement or good taste
their roughneck antics were amusing only if you were as drunk as they were
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in thug
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
Examples 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 roughneck
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2024
Trey Smoak’s roughneck monitor lizard was out of his sight for about 10 minutes Friday when the Crowley resident went to put up groceries.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Feb. 2024
Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 6 Feb. 2024
Elena, easily influenced, takes a shine to the handsome roughneck.
—Esther Zuckerman, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for roughneck 
Adjective
That sequence feels like it might have been made by one of those roughneck filmmakers in the early days of Hollywood, just hauling a lot of equipment and stuntmen out to the desert and risking their lives to make some crazed, truly dangerous action set piece.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2024
Trey Smoak’s roughneck monitor lizard was out of his sight for about 10 minutes Friday when the Crowley resident went to put up groceries.
—Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Feb. 2024
Noun
Born in Clinton, Okla., and raised in Moore, a suburb of Oklahoma City, Keith worked as a roughneck in the oil fields, then played as a semiprofessional football player before kicking off his music career.
—Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 6 Feb. 2024
Elena, easily influenced, takes a shine to the handsome roughneck.
—Esther Zuckerman, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for roughneck
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roughneck
Adjective
-
The show was so bawdy — almost vulgar in a really fun way.Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2024
-
Read more Here's what else to know one week before Election Day: Trump is on damage duty: The former president's campaign is scrambling to distance itself from racist, vulgar, and sexist comments made by speakers at Trump's Sunday night rally at Madison Square Garden in New York.Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY, 29 Oct. 2024
Noun
-
Long maintaining that the protesters are just thugs, Najmeh painfully removes the rounds from Sadaf’s bleeding wounds, her assumptions about the government she’s loyally obeyed falling away.Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 28 Nov. 2024
-
The society of Iverson’s youth rendered him an unredeemable thug and jailed him for it as a minor.Marcus Thompson II, The Athletic, 22 Nov. 2024
Adjective
-
Whether Tammy was a sympathetic victim or a crass criminal seemed to depend on the scene and the song, and unfortunately, those songs from a composer by the name of Elton John were not exactly praise-worthy.EW Staff, EW.com, 11 Dec. 2024
-
But as some critics cited the lawsuit after the shooting, or even joked about it, others viewed these reactions as crass.Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
Rolling with the sound of Slo-Be Bryant 3, one of the great West Coast tapes of the 2020s, Slo-Be’s steely, ominous murmurs give his sentimental gangster rap the air of sorcery.Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 9 Dec. 2024
-
However, as the volatile gangster, the caregiver and bumbling daddy’s boy begin to plot and scheme, things don’t exactly go according to plan.Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 6 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
Wondering how to get out of Dodge without being rude?Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 8 Dec. 2024
-
The officers weren't rude, angry, or insolent — as required of a battery conviction — and used their training and legal authority to do their jobs.Ryan Murphy, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
The film focuses on young Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) — who's accidentally left home alone over the holidays — and his clever plans to outwit a pair of criminals trying to rob his home on Christmas Eve.Athena Sobhan, People.com, 8 Dec. 2024
-
Trump has said deportations will focus on criminals first, as immigration enforcement has since former President Barack Obama's presidency.Sarah D. Wire, USA TODAY, 8 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
Given that Ontario is not a major producer of crude oil, Ford’s threat appeared to specifically apply to electricity the United States imports from Canada.Matt Egan, CNN, 13 Dec. 2024
-
Canada provides natural gas to the U.S. and roughly 20% of the crude oil used by its southern neighbor.Ahmad Mukhtar, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
Or even an appearance from Tom Holland’s Peter Parker that would mean two hours haven’t been wasted watching this forgettable origin tale of a villain who’s not really THAT bad.Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 14 Dec. 2024
-
The Grinch bore a striking resemblance to Jim Carrey's version of the beloved Christmas villain.Rachel Raposas, People.com, 13 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near roughneck
Cite this Entry
“Roughneck.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughneck. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share