1
as in to lick
to strike repeatedly
she was badly roughed up by her boxing partner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to abuse
to abuse physically
the photographer claimed that he had been roughed up by the actor's bodyguards outside the club
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rough (up)
Verb
-
The T-shirt, available in numerous colors, features a woman suggestively licking a stamp that contains the distinctive Playboy image of a rabbit wearing a bowtie.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
7 Feb. 2025 -
Danielle took her shot and voted for Boston Rob, who managed to turn the vote onto Wes Bergmann, wiggle out of banishment, and make his way back into the turret to lick his wounds.—
Vulture Staff,
Vulture,
6 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
President Andrew Jackson famously abused this authority, and this led to the creation of the Civil Service Act.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
6 Feb. 2025
-
Today, Hildebrandt is behind bars after pleading guilty to abusing the children of family vlogger and business partner Ruby Franke, who also pleaded guilty to the same crimes and is currently in prison.—
Christine Pelisek,
People.com,
6 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Dylan notices the slogan and examines the poster to find that Irv hid his drawing of the Exports Hall, with detailed instructions on how to get there written on the back, behind it.—
Megan McCluskey,
TIME,
14 Feb. 2025
-
His wife, Avital, who was seven months pregnant at the time, hid in a safe room with their two daughters.—
Julia Frankel,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
The mob attacked the sick and elderly and raped multiple women, according to the report.—
Chelsea Bailey,
CNN,
16 Feb. 2025
-
Government officials and local civil society leaders didn't immediately comment, though Congo's Communications Ministry said the rebels had violated ceasefire agreements and attacked Congolese troops working to avoid urban warfare and violence in Bukavu.—
JUSTIN KABUMBA,
arkansasonline.com,
16 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
This brass was crushed in a flattened oval around the dog’s neck, as though it had been pounded with a hammer.—
Frank C. Hibben,
Outdoor Life,
13 Feb. 2025
-
There are surely similarities to sectors such as domestic manufacturing and agriculture, which were also pounded by global competition, technological disruption and automation.—
Ryan Faughnder,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Police said Thompson was walking from his hotel toward the venue on W. 54th St. near Sixth Ave., when he was ambushed by a masked gunman around 6:45 a.m.—
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
15 Feb. 2025
-
Soon, a ransom drop was made, and the men were rescued by a cohort of Moïse in what one of the abductees would describe as the same white Toyota Hilux pickup with a government plates that ambushed them a week earlier.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
5 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Linda lashes out at everyone, a bottomless pit of emotional need, and takes refuge in drugs and alcohol.—
Taylor Antrim,
Vogue,
3 Feb. 2025
-
Trump has lashed out at the fees U.S. shipping pays to use the canal but seems most animated by the involvement of a Chinese company in its operations.—
Simon Lewis and Matt Spetalnick,
USA TODAY,
1 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
But much of the NL Central seems stagnant, the NL West has the Colorado Rockies to kick around, and the NL East can manhandle the Miami Marlins.—
Chad Jennings,
The Athletic,
14 Feb. 2025
-
Arrested, we were manhandled and taken at frighteningly high speeds to a Polish police station.—
Avi Weiss,
New York Daily News,
27 Jan. 2025
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.
Thesaurus Entries Near rough (up)
Cite this Entry
“Rough (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rough%20%28up%29. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share