as in roughhousing
wildly playful or mischievous behavior
their parents simply wouldn't tolerate any roughhouse in the living room
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to wrestle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to cut up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of roughhouse
Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 2 Dec. 2021
Chewy orecchiette roughhouse with big hunks of sausage and broccolini, enrobed in a rich goat cheese fonduta.
—Dominic Armato, azcentral, 16 July 2019
Sandy West, NBC News, 7 Oct. 2023
In another, my son roughhoused with friends and Buddy attacked.
—Michelle Madden, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2023
See All Example Sentences for roughhouse
Noun
Phil bitterly watches from a distance while his fellow cowhands roughhouse, bathe together and chase prostitutes at a local saloon.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 2 Dec. 2021
Chewy orecchiette roughhouse with big hunks of sausage and broccolini, enrobed in a rich goat cheese fonduta.
—Dominic Armato, azcentral, 16 July 2019
Verb
Raised on her family’s farm in conservative Nebraska in the 1960s and ’70s, Ashley Swartz took her cues about life from her surroundings: At home, the men worked the farm; elsewhere, boys roughhoused and participated in sports; at church, there was good and there was evil.
—Sandy West, NBC News, 7 Oct. 2023
In another, my son roughhoused with friends and Buddy attacked.
—Michelle Madden, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2023
See All Example Sentences for roughhouse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roughhouse
Verb
-
Retail Media’s Measurement Challenges The retail media industry has wrestled with measurement standardization since its inception, with brands often frustrated by inconsistent approaches across different retailers.—
Kiri Masters,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
-
Over his nearly 32-year career, Homicide wrestled for nearly every major promotion, with the notable exception of WWE.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
20 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
The short reel shows users how to cut up and tape together cardboard pieces to create a little homemade tool that helps toddlers learn how to fold shirts.—
Adrianna Rodriguez,
USA TODAY,
10 Mar. 2025
-
This tincture spray — made by soaking cut up avocado pits in 91 percent rubbing alcohol overnight — can help with just about any type of pain, one TikTok user claims in a video that has racked up millions of views.—
Tom Gavin,
EverydayHealth.com,
24 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Black models confided in her, sharing stories of their hair being damaged, mistreated, or outright ignored by stylists unfamiliar with their textures.—
Lyric Christian,
Essence,
12 Mar. 2025
-
Both Kansas City officials and KC Pet Project agree that the city’s current chapter on animal control in the city code has flaws that impede the ability of animal-control officers to go onto private property without permission to impound vicious dogs and animals that are being mistreated.—
Mike Hendricks,
Kansas City Star,
5 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Its governor, Edward Jackson, was a close friend of the the Indiana Klan leader, D. C. Stephenson, a pudgy man with a reputation for high living, carousing, and trouble with the law.—
Tara McAndrew,
JSTOR Daily,
25 Jan. 2017
-
From there, a series of scenes — a late-night house party full of adults drinking and carousing, a cascade of tinsel falling off a Christmas tree, a playground fail — replicate a you-are-there feeling as a preadolescent named Elwood Curtis navigates the agonies and ecstasies of boyhood.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
12 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
The action anime feature for everyone who couldn’t get enough of the horseplay in The Two Towers has finally cantered onto Max.—
Savannah Salazar,
Vulture,
1 Mar. 2025
-
Key speeches are faithfully delivered to an audience of two, not thousands; a scene of soldiers destructively revelling on a bridge is given a different spirit by ironic, out-of-time horseplay.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
8 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
In April 2024, Russia destroyed one of Ukraine's largest power plants, and in December 2024, Russia pummeled Ukraine's power grid.—
Rachel Wolf,
Fox News,
7 Mar. 2025
-
Chris Kirkland For the first two billion years of its life, Earth was regularly pummeled by huge space rocks, including an absolutely mammoth collision with a Mars-sized body that gave birth to the Moon about 4.5 billion years ago.—
Michael Irving,
New Atlas,
6 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
While Mi-kyung and Baek-ho resist falling in love, the drama keeps the plot in motion with plenty of hate-to-love quibbling, some pratfalls and ample clowning around by a host of eccentric characters.—
Joan MacDonald,
Forbes,
4 Mar. 2025
-
His days from clowning around the North Side may be over, but his love of his hometown is still strong.—
Justin Kaufmann,
Axios,
28 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Key speeches are faithfully delivered to an audience of two, not thousands; a scene of soldiers destructively revelling on a bridge is given a different spirit by ironic, out-of-time horseplay.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
8 Feb. 2025
-
Another interesting finding from the clinical trial that was more recently reveled is the reduction of visceral fat.—
Yola Robert,
Forbes,
21 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Roughhouse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roughhouse. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share