as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the loan shark sent a couple of gorillas to "convince" him to pay up
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Recent Examples of gorilla
Unlike Netflix, which is still considered the 800-pound gorilla in the space and rolls out specials weekly, Hulu is sticking to a monthly release plan.
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Lacey Rose, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Oct. 2024
In the nine years since Trump first burst onto the scene, no opponent—Democrat or Republican—has dealt with the 800-lb. gorilla of American politics as coolly, or gotten under his skin to such a degree.
—Brian Bennett, TIME, 11 Sep. 2024
In the minds of those in the know, SB 1047 is the elephant in the room, the 600-pound gorilla, the whale of an AI bill.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Sep. 2024
Learn more about the Louisville Zoo Endangered Sumatran tiger at Louisville Zoo euthanized due to poor health
Louisville Zoo celebrates first Sumatran tiger cub born at facility in nearly 20 years
Meet Patty, the Louisville Zoo's new gorilla.
—Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 14 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gorilla 
Lacey Rose, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Oct. 2024
In the nine years since Trump first burst onto the scene, no opponent—Democrat or Republican—has dealt with the 800-lb. gorilla of American politics as coolly, or gotten under his skin to such a degree.
—Brian Bennett, TIME, 11 Sep. 2024
In the minds of those in the know, SB 1047 is the elephant in the room, the 600-pound gorilla, the whale of an AI bill.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Sep. 2024
Learn more about the Louisville Zoo Endangered Sumatran tiger at Louisville Zoo euthanized due to poor health
Louisville Zoo celebrates first Sumatran tiger cub born at facility in nearly 20 years
Meet Patty, the Louisville Zoo's new gorilla.
—Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 14 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gorilla
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gorilla
Noun
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The climax, in which Dwight and his crew beat a group of nameless Chinese immigrant thugs into submission after they’re used as cannon fodder by Cal Thresher to sabotage Dwight’s wind turbines, is more important to the plot and even uglier.Sean T. Collins, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2024
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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
Noun
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Marlena’s John is an iconic hero, and unfailingly rescuing her from all matter of villains.Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2024
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The film stars, of all people, Hugh Grant, who is said to have an amazing turn as a villain in the film.Paul Tassi, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
Noun
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But the pandemic-era inflationary period played out unlike any other in history, and wealthy people made out like bandits.Allison Morrow, CNN, 31 Oct. 2024
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When the film starts, a cursed bandit of pirates led by Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) are aboard Sparrow’s former ship, the Black Pearl, and have kidnapped Turner’s love interest, Elizabeth Swann (Knightley).Yasmeen Hamadeh, People.com, 27 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Many Japanese action films are too much about fantasy, either Yakuza [gangsters] or serial killers.Patrick Frater, Variety, 1 Nov. 2024
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Liam Neeson, in perhaps his final appearance in an action film, portrays a gangster trying to make amends.Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 30 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Harris' lead is driven by older women voters and women independents. Nov. 3: Trump escalates violent rhetoric, suggesting at a Pennsylvania rally that an assassin would have to shoot through the news media to hit him.Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024
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And during this year’s election, the FBI foiled a plot by Iran to pay an assassin $1 million to kill Donald Trump.Brian Bennett, TIME, 4 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Its undeniably a humanitarian crisis and a very real security threat because of drug cartels, criminals and terrorists crossing the border.Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Orange County Register, 5 Nov. 2024
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The Jordanians will soar like eagles to hunt you down, one criminal after another.Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Tickets went on sale Thursday for the illuminated tradition, a 1.5-mile crawl through the park with thousands of twinkling lights creating tunnels, elves, snowflakes, a basketball-tossing Santa, pirate ships and even dinosaurs.Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
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One young girl stared slack-jawed in shock at Rodrigo while the other crew of kids with her — including a few Care Bears and a pirate — grabbed handfuls of treats from her bowl.Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 1 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Configuration Options: Build Your Perfect iMac The only crucial changes to the iMac from previous models are under the hood, with a new M4 processor available in two versions, one with eight CPU and eight GPU cores, and one with 10 of each.Brian Westover, PCMAG, 7 Nov. 2024
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But there are some concerns with Fitzgerald under the hood, namely in his strikeout rate (31.7%) and below-average exit velocity (22nd percentile).Justice delos Santos, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Gorilla.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gorilla. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
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