rough out

British

verb

See rough
engineering to machine (a workpiece, such as a casting or forging) with heavy cuts leaving a rough surface to be finished

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

rough out Idioms

Also, rough in. Prepare or indicate in unfinished form, as in He roughed out several plans for a merger, or They roughed in where the doors would go without checking with the architect. [Second half of 1700s]

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.

It is rough out there for job seekers, unless they are looking for work in healthcare.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 24, 2026

"When you're shopping for a big family like mine, it's rough out here," she told the BBC while shopping for groceries and taking children to appointments across town.

From BBC • Oct. 26, 2024

“It’s rough out here. There’s no bathroom or water, you’re nauseous all the time,” Darby, 40, said.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 17, 2023

“It’s been rough out here,” he told me.

From Slate • Jun. 14, 2023

“If a jock showed even the slightest trace of cowardice,” wrote Arcaro, “it could get awfully rough out there.”

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023