raunch
Americannoun
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smuttiness or vulgarity; crudeness; obscenity.
porno magazines and other purveyors of raunch.
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slovenliness; grubbiness.
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an earthy, raw musical style derived from blues and gospel.
a singer who can go easily from raunch to rock.
noun
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lack of polish or refinement; crudeness
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slovenliness or untidiness
Etymology
Origin of raunch
1960–65, back formation from raunchy
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
If Hulu’s “Shoresy” is the poster child for successfully balancing raunch and heart, “Ted” is on the opposite end — crass and lazy.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 27, 2026
Yet despite the song’s uninhibited raunch, its popularity was partly earned from one of the music industry’s oldest bugaboos: self-censorship.
From New York Times • Oct. 27, 2020
This may be because we usually see these two cultures situated oppositionally: either raunch is a path of resistance away from conservative religiosity or vice versa.
From Salon • Oct. 22, 2020
It lacks the sympathetic heart of “Lady Bird,” the self-reflecting wisdom of “The Edge of Seventeen” and the hilarious raunch of “The To-Do List,” emerging as the Natty Light equivalent of those full-strength brews.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 27, 2018
Ali Wong: A writer for ABC’s “Fresh Off the Boat,” Wong mixes raunch, pop culture and stories about growing up with Chinese and Vietnamese parents in her energetic stand-up.
From Washington Post • Mar. 31, 2016
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
