noun
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the coarse indigestible constituents of food or fodder, which provide bulk to the diet and promote normal bowel function See also dietary fibre
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any rough or coarse material
Etymology
Origin of roughage
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.
The effects of fibre were first discovered in the 1970s, when it was believed that fibre was just "hard roughage stuff" that helped our bodies get rid of waste, explains Whelan.
From BBC • Jan. 16, 2026
Therefore, the digestive system must be able to handle large amounts of roughage and break down the cellulose.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
Although this heap of roughage looks as if it should be taken for medicinal purposes only, the greens have lost their ferocious raw quality after being thoroughly kneaded with a Caesar-like dressing.
From New York Times • Jan. 31, 2022
It's a time when we focus on our "beach bodies": We're in and out of the gym and then right over to our favorite restaurant for that big bowl of summer roughage.
From Salon • Dec. 31, 2021
"Mr. Carboy," he said in a voice that needed roughage badly.
From The Man Who Played to Lose by Janifer, Laurence M.
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.
