rugged

[ruhg-id]

See more synonyms for rugged on Thesaurus.com

adjective

having a roughly broken, rocky, hilly, or jagged surface: rugged ground.
(of a face) wrinkled or furrowed, as by experience or the endurance of hardship.
roughly irregular, heavy, or hard in outline or form; craggy: Lincoln's rugged features.

rough, harsh, or stern, as persons or nature.
full of hardship and trouble; severe; hard; trying: a rugged life.
tempestuous; stormy: rugged weather.
harsh to the ear: rugged sounds.
rude, uncultivated, or unrefined.
homely or plain: rugged fare.
capable of enduring hardship, wear, etc.; strong and tough: rugged floor covering; a rugged lumberjack.

Origin of rugged

1300–50; Middle English < Scandinavian; compare Swedish rugga to roughen (of cloth); cf. rug

Related formsrug·ged·ly, adverbrug·ged·ness, nounun·rug·ged, adjective

Synonyms for rugged

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com

1. uneven, irregular, craggy. 4. austere. 6. turbulent. 7. grating, cacophonous. 8. unpolished, crude.

Antonyms for rugged

1. smooth. 4. mild. 10. frail.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for ruggedness

vigor, manhood, potency, strength, manliness, power, machismo, macho, muscularity, maleness, ruggedness, forceful

Examples from the Web for ruggedness

Contemporary Examples of ruggedness

But thanks to work done in the 1960s and 1970s, “it is still seen as a representation of American Western ruggedness.”
Yes We Can Still Market: Why U.S. Brands Remain World’s Most Valuable
Daniel Gross
June 1, 2014

Historical Examples of ruggedness

There is no ruggedness in the meter, no violence in the stream of images.
Life Immovable
Kostes Palamas
Sometimes we like ruggedness, and again we like things made easy.
The Complete Essays of C. D. Warner
Charles Dudley Warner
Luther also was thought by some to be a mere compound of violence and ruggedness.
Character
Samuel Smiles
You might cite the ruggedness of oaks and the grimness of crags as masculine.
The Life and Letters of Lafcadio Hearn, Volume 2
Elizabeth Bisland
Nothing can convey an idea of the grandeur and ruggedness of the mountains.
Mount Rainier
Various

British Dictionary definitions for ruggedness

rugged

adjective

having an uneven or jagged surface
rocky or steeprugged scenery
(of the face) strong-featured or furrowed
rough, severe, or stern in character
without refinement or culture; ruderugged manners
involving hardship; harshhe leads a rugged life in the mountains
difficult or harda rugged test
(of equipment, machines, etc) designed to withstand rough treatment or use in rough conditionsa handheld rugged computer which can survive being submerged in water
mainly US and Canadian sturdy or strong; robust

Derived Formsruggedly, adverbruggedness, noun

Word Origin for rugged

C14: from Scandinavian; compare Swedish rugga to make rough

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

Word Origin and History for ruggedness

rugged

adj.

c.1300, "rough, shaggy, careworn" (originally of animals), from Old Norse rogg "shaggy tuft" (see rug). "The precise relationship to ragged is not quite clear, but the stem is no doubt ultimately the same" [OED]. Meaning "vigorous, strong, robust" is American English, by 1848.

We were challenged with a peace-time choice between the American system of rugged individualism and a European philosophy of diametrically opposed doctrines -- doctrines of paternalism and state socialism. [Herbert Hoover, speech in New York, Oct. 22, 1928]

Hoover said the phrase was not his own, and it is attested from 1897, though not in a patriotic context. Related: Ruggedly; ruggedness.