thug

English

Etymology

From Hindi ठग (ṭhag, “swindler, fraud, cheat”).

Thuggee was an Indian network of secret fraternities who were engaged in murdering and robbing travellers and known for strangling their victims, operating from the 17th century (possibly as early as 13th century) to the 19th century. During British Imperial rule of India, many Indian words passed into common English, and in 1810 thug referred to members of these Indian gangs. The sense was adopted more generally as "ruffian, cutthroat" by 1839. See also English thatch, deck.

Pronunciation

• enPR: thŭg, IPA^(key): /θʌɡ/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• IPA^(key): /ʈʰəɡ/
• Rhymes: -ʌɡ

Noun

thug (plural thugs)

1. A person who is affiliated with a criminal gang or organisation.
2. (historical) One of a band of assassins formerly active in northern India who worshipped Kali and offered their victims to her.

   Synonym: phansigar

3. (horticulture) An overvigorous plant that spreads and dominates the flowerbed.
4. A violent, aggressive, and often truculent person.
5. A wooden bat used in the game of miniten, fitting around the player's hand.
   • 2021, Anna Durand, Natural Satisfaction:

     I pushed up out of my chaise and headed for the miniten court. Leah handed me her thug as I walked past her.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:villain

Derived terms

• rent-a-thug
• thuggery
• thuggish
• thuggism
• thuggy
• thug it out
• thug life
• thuglike

 

Translations

someone who treats others violently or roughly

• Abkhaz: please add this translation if you can
• Afrikaans: rampokker (af)
• Albanian: rrugaç (sq)
• Arabic: بَلْطَجِيّ (ar) m (balṭajiyy)
• Armenian: ավազակ (hy) (avazak), մարդասպան (hy) (mardaspan)
• Avar: хъачагъ (qxačağ)
• Basque: gaizkile
• Belarusian: галаварэ́з m (halavaréz), разбо́йнік m (razbójnik), разбо́йніца f (razbójnica), банды́т m (bandýt), банды́тка f (bandýtka)
• Bengali: ঠগ (bn) (ṭhog), টেঁটন (ṭẽṭon)
• Bulgarian: главоре́з (bg) m (glavoréz), разбо́йник (bg) m (razbójnik), разбо́йничка f (razbójnička), разбо́йница f (razbójnica), банди́т (bg) m (bandít), банди́тка f (bandítka)
• Chechen: please add this translation if you can
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 惡棍／恶棍 (zh) (ègùn), 暴徒 (zh) (bàotú), 歹徒 (zh) (dǎitú)

• Czech: bandita (cs) m, banditka f, gangster m, gangsterka f, hrdlořez m
• Dutch: schoelie, schurk (nl)
• Esperanto: bandito (eo), brutulo
• Finnish: kovanaama (fi)
• French: bandit (fr) m, voyou (fr) m, casseur (fr) m, racaille (fr) f, thug (fr) m or f, coupe-jarret (fr) m
• Georgian: ჩხუბისთავი (čxubistavi), ყაჩაღი (q̇ačaɣi)
• German: Schurke (de) m, Rowdy (de) m, Schläger (de) m, Randalierer (de) m
• Greek: κακοποιός (el) c (kakopoiós)
• Hebrew: בִּרְיוֹן (he) m (biryón), (flowerly) אִישׁ זְרוֹעַ m (ish zróa)
• Hindi: डाकू (hi) m (ḍākū), ठग (hi) m (ṭhag), टपोरी m (ṭaporī), मुस्टंडा (hi) m (musṭaṇḍā)
• Hungarian: orgyilkos (hu), bandita (hu), gengszter (hu), huligán (hu), zsivány (hu)
• Irish: maistín m, amhas m, bithiúnach m
• Italian: delinquente (it) m, teppista (it) m or f
• Japanese: 凶悪犯人 (きょうあくはんにん, kyōaku hannin), ちんぴら (ja) (chinpira), 殺し屋 (ja) (ごろしや, goroshiya), サグ (ja) (sagu)
• Kannada: ಕೊಲೆಗಡುಕ (kn) (kolegaḍuka), ಕೊಲೆಗಾರ (kn) (kolegāra)
• Khmer: តិរច្ឆាន (km) (teracchaan), អ្នកលេងកាប់ចាក់ (nĕək leing kap cak), យូកូង (yuu koung), កាចកោង (kaac kaong)
• Korean: 폭력배(暴力輩) (ko) (pongnyeokbae)
• Lithuanian: banditas m
• Malagasy: jiolahy (mg), mpanendaka
• Mongolian: луйварчин (mn) (lujvarčin)
• Norman: poltron m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: bølle m, kjeltring (no) m

• Occitan: sacamand (oc) m, bandit m, malfaràs m, gusàs m
• Ossetian: стъигъӕг (st’iǧæg)
• Persian: خلاف کار (xalâf kâr), اوباش (fa) (owbâš), اراذل (fa) (arâzel), گانگستر (fa) (gângester)
• Polish: zbir (pl) m, bandyta (pl) m, bandytka (pl) f, rzezimieszek (pl), zbój (pl) m
• Portuguese: bandido (pt) m, facínora (pt) m, malfeitor (pt) m, capanga (pt)
• Russian: головоре́з (ru) m (golovoréz), разбо́йник (ru) m (razbójnik), разбо́йница (ru) f (razbójnica), моло́дчик (ru) (molódčik), банди́т (ru) m (bandít), банди́тка (ru) f (bandítka)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ра́збо̄јнӣк m, ра́збојница f

  Roman: rázbōjnīk (sh) m, rázbojnica (sh) f

• Slovak: hrdlorez m
• Slovene: razbojnik m, razbojnica f
• Sotho: tsotsi
• Spanish: matón m, macarra (es) m or f, rufián (es) m, perdonavidas (es)
• Swedish: gangster (sv) c, bandit (sv) c, skurk (sv) c, bov (sv) c
• Thai: นักเลงโต (th) (nák-leeng-dtoo), นักเลง (th) (nák-leeng)
• Tibetan: please add this translation if you can
• Turkish: haydut (tr), eşkıya (tr)
• Tuvan: please add this translation if you can
• Ukrainian: головорі́з m (holovoríz), розбі́йник m (rozbíjnyk), розбі́йниця f (rozbíjnycja), банди́т (uk) m (bandýt), банди́тка (uk) f (bandýtka), горлорі́з m (horloríz), по́кидьок (uk) m (pókydʹok), поки́дьок (uk) m (pokýdʹok)
• Urdu: ڈاکو m (ḍākū), ٹھگ (ur) m (ṭhag)
• Vietnamese: du côn (vi)
• Welsh: llabwst m, colbiwr m, thyg m
• Yiddish: שלעגער m (shleger), שלאַמער m (shlamer) (slang)

a member of the Thuggee

• Bengali: ঠগ (bn) (ṭhog)
• Hindi: ठग (hi) m (ṭhag)
• Urdu: ٹھگ (ur) (ṭhag)
• Welsh: thygî m, llindagwriaeth f, llindagwr m

Verb

thug (third-person singular simple present thugs, present participle thugging, simple past and past participle thugged)

1. To commit acts of thuggery, to live the life of a thug, or to dress and act in a manner reminiscent of someone who does.

Anagrams

• Guth

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English thug, from Hindi ठग (ṭhag).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tœɡ/
• IPA^(key): /tɔɡ/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

thug m or f (plural thugs)

1. (derogatory) thug, yob.

Irish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhʊɡ/
• IPA^(key): /ˈhʌɡ/

Verb

thug

1. analytic past indicative of tabhair

Scottish Gaelic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [huk]

Verb

thug (dependent tug)

1. past of thoir