roughhouse
roughhouse Lexical Profile
roughhouse Game Scores & Validity
• verb
North American To act or play in a boisterous, rowdy, or physically rough manner without intent to cause harm.
"The children were told not to roughhouse in the living room near the glass coffee table."
North American To handle or treat someone in a rough, physical, or playfully aggressive way.
"The older puppies tended to roughhouse the smaller ones during their afternoon playtime."
• noun
North American Boisterous, noisy, and physically rough play or mock fighting, especially indoors.
"A friendly game of tag in the basement quickly turned into a noisy roughhouse."
• adjective
North American Characterized by boisterous, rowdy, or physically rough play or behavior.
"The coach warned the players that roughhouse tactics on the field would result in immediate penalties."
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in late 19th-century American English as a compound of 'rough' and 'house', originally referring to a disorderly household, saloon, or theatrical uproar before shifting to mean boisterous indoor play.