rough

rough1 [ rʌf ] adjective ***

▸ 1 not smooth

▸ 2 difficult

▸ 3 not gentle

▸ 4 not finished/exact

▸ 5 with crime/violence

▸ 6 voice: not soft

▸ 7 not feeling well

▸ + PHRASES

1. ) with a surface that is not smooth:

The walls were built of dark rough stone.

Burlap provides warm color and a rough homespun texture.

─ opposite SMOOTH

a ) used about land and roads that are difficult to travel on:

They covered the 30 miles of rough terrain in record time.

b ) used about the surface of a lake, river, or ocean that has a lot of waves, often because the weather is bad:

Rough waves prevented rescuers from approaching the ship.

─ opposite SMOOTH

2. ) INFORMAL difficult and with a lot of problems:

Oh boy, I had a rough day at the office.

a rough night (=a night when you cannot sleep): I feel terrible, I had a rough night last night.

a rough time: You've been through rough times, you know what it's like.

a rough ride (=a difficult period of time): It's been a rough ride for us, both financially and emotionally.

3. ) not gentle:

Don't be so rough with her, James, she's only a baby.

─ opposite GENTLE

4. ) a rough drawing or piece of writing is not completely finished:

This is a rough drawing of the table I want to build.

rough draft: Here is a rough draft for you to read.

a ) used about an object that is not made very well, or not completely finished:

The customers sat at rough wooden tables.

b ) a rough idea or guess is not detailed or exact:

I don't know the precise cost, but I can give you a rough idea.

5. ) a rough place is not pleasant because there is a lot of crime or violence there:

Madeline grew up in a rough neighborhood.

That's a pretty rough bar.

6. ) a rough voice is not soft and is unpleasant to listen to

7. ) BRITISH INFORMAL if someone feels rough, they do not feel well

be rough on someone

to treat someone in a way that is unfair:

Aren't you are being a little rough on him? He is only a child.

rough edges

minor faults:

Despite the rough edges, we believe he's a player of great potential.

rough justice

treatment or punishment that is not fair

╾ rough|ness noun uncount

=> ROUGHLY

rough

rough 2 [ rʌf ] verb

rough it INFORMAL

to live without things that you usually live with, for example water or electricity:

Let's rough it and go camping.

,rough `out phrasal verb transitive

to produce a drawing or piece of writing without including all the details:

I've roughed out a few sketches for you.

,rough `up phrasal verb transitive INFORMAL

to physically attack someone:

They roughed us up and took away our equipment.

rough

rough 3 [ rʌf ] noun

1. ) singular the part of a GOLF COURSE where the grass is tall and not cut

2. ) count a piece of writing or a drawing that is not finished

3. ) count INFORMAL OLD-FASHIONED someone who is violent and commits crimes

in rough

if you do a piece of written work in rough, you do it in a form that you will finish or improve at a later time

take the rough with the smooth

to accept the bad things that happen as well as the good things

rough

rough 4 [ rʌf ] adverb BRITISH

if you sleep or live rough, you sleep or live outside

play rough

to play in a violent way