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# thug

noun (a thug, thugs)

«thug» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A thug is a violent, rough person, especially a criminal who hurts people. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#m1)
2. (informal) People sometimes call someone a thug if they behave in a bullying, aggressive way. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#m2)

### In the lessons

In news, stories and police dramas, thugs are attackers, muggers or troublemakers. In sport, a player who fouls roughly may be called a thug by fans. Phrases: «a gang of thugs», «a hired thug», «act like a thug», «thuggish».

### Examples

- A gang of thugs smashed the shop windows. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#x1)
- The newspaper called the attackers cowardly thugs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#x2)
- Don't act like a thug just because you're bigger. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#x3)
- The thug was caught on camera and arrested. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#x4)
- The fans called the defender a thug after the foul. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#x5)
- In the film, the boss sent two thugs to frighten the shopkeeper. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/#x6)

### Note

Countable noun; a strong, insulting word. Adjective: thuggish; behaviour: thuggery. Calling a person a thug is name-calling; it is better to describe what they did.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «thug» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/thug/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«thug» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/thug.html) on Mova free.