thug

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thug

/θʌɡ/ US, UK, Southern England
/θɐɡ/ Australia, New Zealand
/θʊɡ/ Northern England
/fʌɡ/
/fʊɡ/
/ʈʰəɡ/ India

Sounds like fug (th-fronting) · Rhymes with -ʌɡ

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Hindustani ठग (ṭhag) / ٹھگ (ṭhag, “swindler, fraud, cheat”), further derived from Prakrit 𑀞𑀕 (ṭhaga), of uncertain origin. See there for more.

Thuggee was a network of gangs in India from the 17th century to the 19th century who robbed and murdered travellers, often by strangling. During British Imperial rule of India, many Indian words passed into common English, and by 1810 thug referred to a member of these Indian gangs. The sense was adopted more generally as "ruffian, cutthroat, and cruel robber" by 1839. Perhaps related to English thatch, deck.

noun thugs

A person who is a member of a gang or criminal organization.
A violent, aggressive, or truculent person. They call you a land of license—free but to thug and thief.
A criminal that extorts people.
A person who use intimidation to coerce others.
historical One of a band of assassins formerly active in northern India who worshipped Kali and sacrificed their victims to her.
Similar: phansigar
One who, usually as a result of social disadvantage, has turned to committing crimes (e.g. selling drugs, robbery, assault, etc.) to make a living; a gangsta.
An overvigorous plant that spreads and dominates the flowerbed.
A wooden bat used in the game of miniten, fitting around the player's hand.

verb thugs · thugging · thugged

informal, transitive To commit acts of thuggery, to live the life of a thug, to menace, to commit crime. Mr. Ingleby ascertained at the office—after threading the mazes of passage and staircase as though he expected momently to be Thugged—that his nephew had not yet come.
informal, transitive (often with out) To appear as a thug; to dress and act in a manner reminiscent of a thug. I don’t thug out, but I’m not Wall Street, either. Russell Simmons and Puffy have clothes for this look in the affordable range.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: hoodlum, goon, punk, tough, toughie, hood, gangsta, gangster, bandit, mugger, robber, thief, hooligan, mob, felon, perp

Translations

Every language

noun someone who treats others violently or roughly

Español	matón, macarra, rufián
한국어	폭력배 pongnyeokbae
日本語	凶悪犯人 kyōaku hannin, チンピラ chinpira, 殺し屋 goroshiya, サグ sagu
中文	惡棍 /恶棍 ègùn, 暴徒 bàotú, 歹徒 dǎitú
हिन्दी	डाकू ḍākū, ठग ṭhag, टपोरी ṭaporī, मुस्टंडा musṭaṇḍā
Português	bandido, facínora, malfeitor, capanga
Français	bandit, voyou, casseur, racaille, thug, coupe-jarret
Deutsch	Schurke, Rowdy, Schläger, Randalierer
Italiano	delinquente, teppista
Ελληνικά	κακοποιός kakopoiós
Русский	головоре́з golovoréz, разбо́йник razbójnik, разбо́йница razbójnica, моло́дчик molódčik, банди́т bandít, банди́тка bandítka
Tiếng Việt	du côn
العربية	بَلْطَجِيّ balṭajiyy
עברית	בִּרְיוֹן biryón, אִישׁ זְרוֹעַ flowerly

noun a member of the Thuggee band of assassins

हिन्दी	ठग ṭhag

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MLA

"thug." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/thug. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

thug. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/thug

Chicago

"thug." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/thug.

BibTeX

@misc{thug_2026,
  title = {thug},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/thug},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}