rowdy 1 of 2

adjective

ˈrau̇-dē How to pronounce rowdy (audio)
Definition of rowdynext
as in boisterous
being rough or noisy in a high-spirited way a rowdy but good-natured group of teenagers

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

rowdy

2 of 2

noun

as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang rowdies had overtaken the neighborhood and were threatening people on the street

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 rowdy
Adjective
Not to mention her infamously rowdy rooftop interview at the 1995 VMAs, throwing shade with Courtney Love and Kurt Loder. — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2026 Authorities are urging people to avoid an herbal extract found during their investigations into the deaths of two students – one on and one off campus – at the University of Mississippi following a rowdy weekend centered on a major football rivalry. — Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 22 Sep. 2026 The first Monday Night Football matchup of the 2026 season was a total disaster class for the Denver Broncos, who got flattened 31-10 by the Kansas City Chiefs at a rowdy Arrowhead Stadium. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2026 The normally festive and rowdy crowd inside the basketball arena in Dallas quickly hushed as a five-minute memorial video began playing. — ABC News, 10 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for rowdy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rowdy
  1. boisterous
  2. thug
  3. raucous
  4. criminal
  5. rambunctious
  6. tough
  7. noisy
  8. gangster
Adjective
  • Brattin was a member of the Missouri Freedom Caucus, an outspoken group of conservatives whose disruptive and boisterous tactics defined Missouri politics for years.
    — Jack Harvel, Kansas City Star, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Duncombe’s friends remember her sunny spirit, boisterous and infectious laugh, unbridled optimism and passion for new experiences.
    — Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of boisterous
Noun
  • These low-level thugs typically are not believed to be formally aligned with Iran.
    — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Borisov, who broke through as a thug with a poet’s soul in the 2024 Anora, vests Ilya with the same spiritual contours.
    — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of thug
Adjective
  • Expect a raucous crowd at Progressive Field, as the Guardians look to make progress towards a return to the World Series for the first time since 2016.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Ionescu fired with her left hand in Jones’ direction, but the pass ended up in the front rows of a raucous State Farm Arena.
    — Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of raucous
Noun
  • That same month, criminals nabbed a $4 million diamond necklace from Vienna’s Museum of Applied Arts (MAK).
    — Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026
  • For decades, Hollywood actor Danny Trejo’s bread and butter was playing gangsters, prison inmates and other assorted criminals.
    — Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of criminal
Adjective
  • Bryan echoing the Truckers is very good news, since their own rambunctious salad days eventually yielded some of this century’s best American anthems.
    — Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Sunny, a rambunctious Portuguese water dog that President Barack Obama got at the start of his second term in the White House, died Tuesday at the age of 13, Obama announced.
    — Amy B Wang, Washington Post, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of rambunctious
Noun
  • Déclassé warriors, sometimes joined by street toughs from other walks of life, gave themselves the airs of swashbuckling samurai.
    — Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • And Susan Collins, as Democrats have seen time and time again, is a real tough out.
    — NBC news, NBC news, 21 June 2026
Definition of tough
Adjective
  • The focus was how AI can be integrated and optimize the existing business – rather than presentation of noisy (and controversial) slates of AI TV shows and movies.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Kerry McCoy’s guitar juices up a mid-song gallop by abruptly pivoting from big and noisy to compressed and snarling; at the climax, everything cuts out for a second to spotlight a Daniel Tracy drum fill.
    — Patrick Lyons, Pitchfork, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of noisy
Noun
  • Certain alleyways were favored for chases and gangster murders.
    — Deputy Managing Editor, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026
  • When citizens rioted in 1918 because the prices of essential commodities such as rice had spiralled out of control, gangsters were hired to crack down on the protesters.
    — Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of gangster

Browse Nearby Words

rowdiness
rowdy
rowdyish
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Cite this Entry

“Rowdy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rowdy. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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