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Synonyms

ride roughshod over

Idioms  

  1. Act without regard for the feelings or interests of others, as in She just forges on, riding roughshod over her colleagues. This term alludes to the practice of arming horses with horseshoes mounted with projecting nails or points, which both gave them better traction and served as a weapon against fallen enemy soldiers. By 1800 it was being used figuratively for bullying behavior.

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.

Critics say PSNs are being used for projects with minimal domestic benefit, including industrial zones managed by foreign companies, and allow developers to ride roughshod over environmental and rights protections.

From Barron's • Oct. 17, 2025

"Developers are being allowed to ride roughshod over the needs of communities and the environment and this has got to stop," he added.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2023

A mayor’s cowardice allows an outlaw to ride roughshod over the citizens of a desolate frontier town.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 20, 2020

“People seldom achieve great things without being willing to ride roughshod over the opposition,” the authors note.

From New York Times • Nov. 2, 2018

Zach Powers, Lena Young, and their crowd ride roughshod over a lot of people.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

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.