as in rough
hastily or roughly constructed
the announcement of his candidacy was made from a rough-and-tumble stage put together just that morning
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in brawl
a rough and often noisy fight usually involving several people
a rough-and-tumble broke out among the fans in the stands
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rough-and-tumble
Stephen Groves, BostonGlobe.com, 25 Feb. 2023
The startup’s rough-and-tumble experiments are even more telling.
—Justine Calma, The Verge, 24 Feb. 2023
Al Weaver, The Hill, 15 Jan. 2025
Successful gold mining today bears little resemblance to the storied era of America’s first gold boom: rough-and-tumble 19th-century boomtowns cropping up overnight to accommodate speculative prospectors, chasing gold veins and rumors.
—Greg McKenna, Fortune, 21 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rough-and-tumble 
Adjective
The trappings of the Senate were another world from Mr. Abourezk’s rough-and-tumble childhood on the Rosebud Indian Reservation, where his Lebanese parents had immigrated and ran a general store.
—Stephen Groves, BostonGlobe.com, 25 Feb. 2023
The startup’s rough-and-tumble experiments are even more telling.
—Justine Calma, The Verge, 24 Feb. 2023
Noun
Ratcliffe experienced a rough-and-tumble confirmation process to become the director of national intelligence (DNI) in 2020.
—Al Weaver, The Hill, 15 Jan. 2025
Successful gold mining today bears little resemblance to the storied era of America’s first gold boom: rough-and-tumble 19th-century boomtowns cropping up overnight to accommodate speculative prospectors, chasing gold veins and rumors.
—Greg McKenna, Fortune, 21 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rough-and-tumble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rough-and-tumble
Adjective
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Most holes look exactly the same, straightforward with skinny fairways and thick rough.—
Brody Miller,
The Athletic,
14 Feb. 2025
-
But the Bulls again had a rough time shooting 3-pointers, making 9 of 41 after going 10-for-47 on Tuesday.—
Andrew Seligman,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Inside the bare-knuckle legal brawl between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.—
Ryan Fonseca,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2025
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Also previously sentenced for their roles in the brawl were Kelvin Servita Arocha, 20, Darwin Gomez, 30, and Yorman Reveron, 25.—
Elizabeth Keogh,
New York Daily News,
4 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Game to game, characters like the speedy Pete Wheeler or clumsy Angela Delvecchio were true to their traits across each release.—
Jake Lang,
Rolling Stone,
7 Feb. 2025
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Relentless, hi-def gore is The Monkey’s greatest achievement, but all the blood-spatter in the world couldn’t redeem its clumsy plotting, frat-boy humor, and feigned memento mori.—
Madison Bloom,
Pitchfork,
7 Feb. 2025
Noun
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That grievance total was the second-highest tally since 2016, according to a USA TODAY Network analysis, suggesting current economic conditions and corporate policies are fueling more clashes over insurance coverage.—
David Robinson,
USA TODAY,
7 Feb. 2025
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Members of the Congolese Red Cross and civil protection workers bury dozens of victims of the recent clashes at a cemetery in Goma on Tuesday.—
Reuters,
NBC News,
6 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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While crude oil was the largest import for Alabama in 2023, automobile and automobile parts followed right behind.—
Jennifer Lindahl,
USA TODAY,
18 Feb. 2025
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The Midstream segment provides crude oil and refined petroleum product transportation, terminaling and processing services, as well as natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) transportation, storage, fractionation, gathering, processing and marketing service.—
Kenneth Squire,
CNBC,
15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Harry would’ve been grumpy and rude, making brusque jokes about inane gender stereotypes and asking direct, invasive questions about anatomy.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
6 Feb. 2025
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Not wanting to be rude, the plumber welcomed Albert in.—
Kristan Hawkins,
Newsweek,
6 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Their rough-and-ready vérité shooting style creates an intimacy with the subject that deepens the emotional response to music that for many of us is ingrained in our DNA.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
25 Nov. 2024
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James meets rough-and-ready cowboy Shea Brennan (Sam Elliott) upon arrival in Fort Worth and joins his wagon train heading West.—
Rendy Jones,
EW.com,
9 Aug. 2024
Adjective
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Houde said these mammoth animals are a primitive group of proboscideans ('elephantoids') from which modern elephants evolved.—
Joseph J. Kolb,
Fox News,
18 July 2017
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Many are primitive and remote, and don’t have restrooms or water.—
OregonLive.com,
OregonLive.com,
12 July 2017
Thesaurus Entries Near rough-and-tumble
Cite this Entry
“Rough-and-tumble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rough-and-tumble. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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