English Explanatory Dictionary

rough

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Not smooth; uneven.
  2. Approximate; hasty or careless; not finished.
  3. Turbulent.
  4. Difficult; trying.
  5. Crude; unrefined.
  6. Worn; shabby; weather-beaten.
  7. Having socio-economic problems, hence possibly dangerous.
  8. Violent; not careful or subtle.
  9. Loud and hoarse; offensive to the ear; harsh; grating.
  10. Not polished; uncut.
  11. Harsh-tasting.
  12. Somewhat ill; sick; in poor condition.
noun
  1. The unmowed part of a golf course.
  2. A rude fellow; a coarse bully; a rowdy.
  3. A scuffed and roughened area of the pitch, where the bowler's feet fall, used as a target by spin bowlers because of its unpredictable bounce.
  4. The raw material from which faceted or cabochon gems are created.
  5. A quick sketch, similar to a thumbnail but larger and more detailed, used for artistic brainstorming.
  6. Boisterous weather.
  7. A piece inserted in a horseshoe to keep the animal from slipping.
verb
  1. To create in an approximate form.
  2. To break the rules by being excessively violent.
  3. To commit the offense of roughing, i.e. to punch another player.
  4. To render rough; to roughen.
  5. To break in (a horse, etc.), especially for military purposes.
  6. To endure primitive conditions.
  7. To roughen a horse's shoes to keep the animal from slipping.
adv
  1. In a rough manner; rudely; roughly.
name
  1. A surname.

Pronunciation

/ɹʌf/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-ruff.wav En-us-rough.ogg En-us-rough.oga /ɹɐf/ En-au-rough.ogg /ɹʊf/ /ɾʌf/

Word forms

rough rougher roughest ruff roughs roughing roughed more rough most rough

Etymology

From Middle English rough, roughe, roȝe, row, rou, ru, ruȝ, ruh, from Old English rūg, rūh, from Proto-Germanic *rūhaz. Cognate with Scots ruch, rouch (“rough”), Saterland Frisian ruuch, rouch (“rough”), West Frisian rûch (“rough”), Low German ruuch (“rough”), Dutch ruig (“rough”), German rau(h) (“rough”), Danish ru (“uneven on the surface, "rough", "rugged"”).

Synonyms

abrasive asperous coarse gimped harsh irregular jagged jaggy rough rugged rugose salebrous scabrous scraggy shagged squarrose uneven unsmooth almost back-of-the-envelope ballpark near agitated tempestuous tumultuous challenging hard tough arduous nasty difficult effortful rocky thistly uneath unsimple rudimentary undeveloped barbaric uncouth crude garagelike primitive rude rudimental unrefined aweless improper bad-mannered bold bumptious churlish impudent discourteous gauche ill-bred ill-mannered impolite incivil insolent

Antonyms

even polished smooth velvety

Related words

rough-hewn

Derived words

cut up rough dog rough have a rough time of it have it rough in rough in the rough lie rough live rough macrorough microrough nanorough nonrough oak rough bulletgall wasp overrough rough and ready rough-and-ready rough and tumble rough around the edges rough-backed litter snake rough bedstraw rough bent rough bentgrass rough bluegrass rough-book rough book rough breathing roughcast roughcaster rough collie Rough Common rough cut rough diamond rough-draw rough draw roughdrawn rough-dressed roughdry rough-edged rough edges rough end of the pineapple rough endoplasmic reticulum rough fish rough-footed rough-footed mud turtle rough-grained rough hawksbeard roughhead rough-hew rough-hewer rough-hewn rough horsetail rough-hound rough house rough-house roughhouse roughie roughish rough justice rough-leaf false vervain roughleg
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