as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
a couple of hoodlums held up the convenience store
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hoodlum
As Velma Davis, she and scene partner Gene Wilder, in his big screen debut, portrayed two young lovebirds who, while kissing on their front porch, notice that a group of hoodlums is stealing Eugene’s car.
—
Greg Evans, Deadline, 20 June 2024
Critics refer to the kids who covered the iconic Beaux Arts-style building as vandals and hoodlums.
—Phoebe Wall Howard, Detroit Free Press, 7 June 2024
Skipping the childhood stuff, the story gets going with Eddie or Edik as a young factory worker and poet manqué in Kharkiv, Ukraine, in the 1960s after a rocky hoodlum phase which saw him getting sent by his parents to a mental hospital.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 May 2024
Those protestors that Saturday didn’t look like principled advocates for anything, but more like a bunch of selfish hoodlums who need to grow up.
—Letter Writers, Twin Cities, 12 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for hoodlum
Greg Evans, Deadline, 20 June 2024
Critics refer to the kids who covered the iconic Beaux Arts-style building as vandals and hoodlums.
—Phoebe Wall Howard, Detroit Free Press, 7 June 2024
Skipping the childhood stuff, the story gets going with Eddie or Edik as a young factory worker and poet manqué in Kharkiv, Ukraine, in the 1960s after a rocky hoodlum phase which saw him getting sent by his parents to a mental hospital.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 May 2024
Those protestors that Saturday didn’t look like principled advocates for anything, but more like a bunch of selfish hoodlums who need to grow up.
—Letter Writers, Twin Cities, 12 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for hoodlum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoodlum
Noun
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The 20th-century Yellowstone Dutton Ranch is under siege from a greedy developer (James Bond star Timothy Dalton) and his thugs in the new season.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA TODAY,
24 Feb. 2025
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But authorities now believe the most heinous acts were the handiwork of a one-time nursing student from Puerto Rico who evolved over a decade from teenage burglar to drug trafficker to rampaging thug.—
Martin E. Comas,
Orlando Sentinel,
30 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Peaky Blinders is led by Shelby — played by Cillian Murphy, who is, of course, returning — a war hero turned gangster who runs 1900s Birmingham.—
Lexi Carson,
The Hollywood Reporter,
9 Mar. 2025
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But, from the look of things in the two-and-a-half-minute clip — which reveals that Hampton owes a debt to a group of local gangsters, among other zany roadblocks — this comeback won’t be a cakewalk.—
Angelique Jackson,
Variety,
6 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Only criminal hacking is a crime, and not all hackers are criminals.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes,
8 Mar. 2025
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Officers says there are many reasons people use fake plates: criminals hoping to avoid being tracked by law enforcement, evading fines on toll roads, or people trying to find a way to drive without a driver’s license or insurance.—
Briah Lumpkins,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Hackman was among the most accomplished actors of his generation, appearing as villains, heroes and antiheroes in dozens of dramas, comedies and action films from the 1960s until his retirement in the early 2000s.—
SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN,
arkansasonline.com,
2 Mar. 2025
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There are spells, curses, vendettas, a twist villain, giant dragons who turn into humanoid warriors and many other creatures populating the world of this gargantuan feat of eye-popping computer animation.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Variety,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
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With Kelby Collins coming in as a transfer, there’s enough depth at bandit for Latham to spend more time at wolf.—
Kennington Smith III,
The Athletic,
26 Feb. 2025
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Try to distract the bandits one at a time until everyone but Casper is left.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
5 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hoodlum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoodlum. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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