1
as in sturdy
able to withstand hardship, strain, or exposure
a rugged construction that survived for hundreds of years
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in tough
difficult to endure
the incredibly rugged conditions that the polar explorers faced
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3
as in gruff
harsh and threatening in manner or appearance
the warrior's rugged features frightened the child
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4
as in muscular
having muscles capable of exerting great physical force
a rugged athlete who's competing in weight lifting in the Olympics
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5
as in jagged
not having a level or smooth surface
rugged terrain that made for slow going
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6
as in difficult
requiring considerable physical or mental effort
even more rugged than most ultramarathons, this one crosses a desert
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7
as in turbulent
marked by turmoil or disturbance especially of natural elements
New Hampshire's Mount Washington has some of the ruggedest weather in all of North America
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8
as in crass
lacking in refinement or good taste
the kind of rugged humor that men have traditionally enjoyed at stag parties
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rugged
The cave is located in a rugged, remote area in Xaisomboun province's Longcheng district, about 75 miles north of the capital, Vientiane.
—
Matt Gutman, CBS News, 27 May 2026
Davis grabs two suitcases off the belt, pulls out a handheld computer that looks like an extra-rugged iPad, and scans the bar codes on the luggage tags.
—Joel Rose, NPR, 26 May 2026
But that is a challenge in rugged terrain such as the Virunga mountains that are central to Volcanoes National Park, which covers part of Rwanda, Uganda and Congo.
—Evelyne Musambi, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2026
Farms sit close to the tracks, and open land stretches between low-rise neighborhoods before the route draws closer to the mountains and the view narrows into high, rugged walls of rock.
—Hana Al-Khodairi, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for rugged
Matt Gutman, CBS News, 27 May 2026
Davis grabs two suitcases off the belt, pulls out a handheld computer that looks like an extra-rugged iPad, and scans the bar codes on the luggage tags.
—Joel Rose, NPR, 26 May 2026
But that is a challenge in rugged terrain such as the Virunga mountains that are central to Volcanoes National Park, which covers part of Rwanda, Uganda and Congo.
—Evelyne Musambi, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2026
Farms sit close to the tracks, and open land stretches between low-rise neighborhoods before the route draws closer to the mountains and the view narrows into high, rugged walls of rock.
—Hana Al-Khodairi, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for rugged
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rugged
Adjective
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Be sure to cover your head and neck with your arms, and crawl under a sturdy table if possible.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
29 May 2026
-
Tutt and his teams have worked on engineering designs to safely drop anything needing a sturdy parachute — including the Orion capsule that splashed down last month off the coast of San Diego after its 477,710-mile journey to the moon and back.—
Pat Maio,
Oc Register,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
Management has partly attributed the membership slowdown to tougher comparisons from a year earlier, but there’s more to the story.—
Paulina Likos,
CNBC,
28 May 2026
-
The California Assembly on Thursday overwhelming voted in favor of a bill that would prohibit children under 16 years old from having a social media account, setting up what is likely to continue to be a tough battle over the coming months.—
Stephen Hobbs,
Sacbee.com,
28 May 2026
Adjective
-
Her ex, Karl (Jake Johnson, impressively devoid of his signature gruff charm), wants to move their adorable daughter, Hazel (Nola Wallace), from New York to Boise with his new partner, Mallory (Jessy Hodges), a polished grown-up who makes the bohemian Paula feel like a mess.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
20 May 2026
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But the grizzled former Man in Black and man-who-failed-to-ground-Maverick isn’t known for playing the type of gruff ol’ cowpoke who’s about to break into song.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
How To Do a Proper Wall Sit Wall sits provide a glimpse into your muscular endurance, isometric strength, and lower-body stability.—
Christa Sgobba,
Health,
19 May 2026
-
The stern Republic Colonel Ward (Sigourney Weaver) contracts him to liberate Rotta the Hutt (voiced by Jeremy Allen White), a muscular slug alien who is the son of the villainous Jabba, and return him to his family in exchange for some vital information.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
19 May 2026
Adjective
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The humble insects, which have jagged wings and fuzzy, thick legs, migrate every year from the Sierra Nevada to warmer coastal areas in winter, laying eggs which grow into caterpillars and eventually new butterflies.—
Paul Rogers,
Mercury News,
26 May 2026
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Seismic images of mid-ocean ridges typically show rough and jagged terrain, formed when lava oozes up into the cold ocean along faults or fissures and hardens suddenly into stone.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
26 May 2026
Adjective
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Building the program had proved difficult.—
Andrew Carter,
Chicago Tribune,
24 May 2026
-
Sindcom 14-Piece Food Storage Containers Set The pantry is one of the most difficult places to organize thanks to boxes of cereal, pasta, baking ingredients, and more scattered about.—
Kelsey Fredricks,
PEOPLE,
24 May 2026
Adjective
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The collapse of its currency is changing that—placing Jakarta at the center of a turbulent 2026.—
William Pesek,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
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The shutdown adds to a turbulent stretch for Madrigal’s restaurant empire.—
Reeti Malhotra
May 22,
Sacbee.com,
22 May 2026
Adjective
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But those efforts did their part to contribute to the overall sense of the Cannes Film Festival as the center of the moviegoing world for 11 days in May, somewhere where crass corporate product lived alongside uncompromising arthouse efforts in a broad-spectrum display of what constitutes cinema.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
27 May 2026
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Directed by Nicolas Athane and Marco Nguyen, Jim Queen is a crass, profane, giddily stupid romp through a heap of stereotypes about gay life in Paris.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rugged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rugged. Accessed 30 May. 2026.
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