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thuggery

 - 2 dictionary results

thug

  [thuhg] ,
Use thuggery in a Sentence
–noun
1. a cruel or vicious ruffian, robber, or murderer.
2. (sometimes initial capital letter) one of a former group of professional robbers and murderers in India who strangled their victims.
Origin:
1800–10; < Hindi thag lit., rogue, cheat

Related forms:
thug⋅ger⋅y  [thuhg-uh-ree] , noun
thuggish, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To thuggery
thug   (thŭg)   
n.  

  1. A cutthroat or ruffian; a hoodlum.

  2. also Thug One of a band of professional assassins formerly active in northern India who worshiped Kali and offered their victims to her.


[Hindi ṭhag, perhaps from Sanskrit sthagaḥ, a cheat, from sthagati, sthagayati, he conceals; see (s)teg- in Indo-European roots.]
thug'ger·y n., thug'gish adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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