Owen GleibermanMichiko Kakutani
Usage of Thug
Although thug was originally (and often still is) a term with strong negative connotations, since at least the early 1990s it has been embraced and reconceived by rap artists.
Mosi Reeves
It now functions in African-American English with far more nuance than those unfamiliar with that reconception will recognize.
John McWhorter
The word's original and ongoing use to refer to criminals is still very much present in the culture at large, however, and use of thug by a white person to refer to a Black person is generally understood to lack the nuance the word carries when used by a Black person, and to instead be an offensive insinuation that a Black person can be assumed to be engaged in criminal behavior.
Synonyms
Examples of thug in a Sentence
Sean T. Collins, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2024
Like other Diablo games, Hades would support cooperative multiplayer, but in the Arkham games, groups of thugs would circle around the Dark Knight, comic-book style, waiting to be punched in the face.
—Jason Schreier, WIRED, 8 Oct. 2024
As young George traverses the city, the viewer glimpses many things that actually happened, including the catastrophic flooding of a Tube station being used as a shelter and the destruction of nightclub Café de Paris, later looted by a crew of thugs led by Stephen Graham’s Albert.
—Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2024
But just as ruthless gang leader Mason (Mekhi Phifer) and his thugs arrive to tie up their loose ends, Shaw rescues her.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for thug 
Dictionary Entries Near thug
Cite this Entry
“Thug.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thug. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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from Hindi and Urdu ṭhag, literally "thief"
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