roughneck
English · Thesaurus
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roughneck
- /ˈɹʌfˌnɛk/
Where it comes from
From rough + neck, originally "someone who works a manual labour job".
noun roughnecks
-
A labourer on an oil rig or in the oilpatch, either skilled or semiskilled.
This first ship had a small geophysical-type drilling rig mounted over the side of the ship with a steel grid runround for the roughnecks, who stood in knee-deep water while making connections or pulling the drill string.
Similar: roustabout
-
A dirty or low-paid worker, a labourer; an ironworker in an ironworks or a steelworker in a steelworks.
Similar: roustabout
- Someone with rough manners; a rowdy or uncouth person. LaTisha has long wanted to show Carole sheʼs not the roughneck she used to be, the roughneck who wasnʼt good enough to be her friend.
verb roughnecks · roughnecking · roughnecked
- To work as a laborer on an oil rig. There was a time not long ago when this region appeared as some enduring mystification, its citizenry best known for roughnecking on the North Slope […]
Translations
Every language
noun someone with rough manners; a rowdy or uncouth person
| Português | grosseirão, malcriado, casca-grossa |
|---|---|
| Français | ours mal léché, arriéré |
| Deutsch | Raubein |
Talk about this word "roughneck." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/roughneck. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. roughneck. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/roughneck "roughneck." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/roughneck.Cite this
@misc{roughneck_2026,
title = {roughneck},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/roughneck},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
