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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

rough around the edges en · ADJ

Pronunciation

Meanings

  1. (idiomatic) In need of refinement; unsophisticated.
    • His writing is appealing, but a bit rough around the edges.
    • The north side of town is a less expensive, rougher round the edges choice for a young family.
    • Caine was pretty rough around the edges, though. I wasn't quite on Scratch's level of thinking outside the box, but it was good groundwork for something the rest of the team could wrap their heads around. 2026 March 20, Gooseworx, “hjsakldfhl” (19:55 from the start), in The Amazing Digital Circus, episode 8, spoken by Kinger (Sean Chiplock):
    • While rough around the edges, the church is really a wonderful place to be.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
rough round the edges alternative lexicographic
rough-around-the-edges alternative lexicographic
roughest around the edges Degree=Sup lexicographic
rougher around the edges Degree=Cmp lexicographic

Relateds

rough and ready · rough edges

Translations (8)

es tosco (in need of refinement) · it smussare gli angoli (in need of refinement) · cmn 粗中有細 /粗中有细 (in need of refinement) · pl nieoszlifowany (in need of refinement) · ru грубоватый (in need of refinement) · pl niedoskonały (in need of refinement) · fi hiomaton (in need of refinement) · fr brut de décoffrage (in need of refinement)