Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - rough

~1 adj 1 »NOT SMOOTH« having an uneven surface  (Her hands were rough from hard work. | A rough track led to the farm. | rough grass)  (- opposite smooth1 (1)) 2 »NOT EXACT« not exact or not containing many details approximate  (This is just a rough sketch but it gives you the idea. | a rough translation | a rough idea)  (Could you give me a rough idea what time you'll be home? | at a rough guess spoken (=without being at all certain or exact))  (At a rough guess, I'd say he was about 45. | a rough estimate)  (I can only give you a rough estimate of the cost at this stage.)  (- see graph at idea) 3 »NOT GENTLE« using force or violence  (Rugby is a very rough game. | A stroller should be easy to fold and capable of withstanding rough treatment.) 4 »TOWN/AREA ETC« a rough area is a place where there is a lot of violence or crime  (a rough part of town) 5 »HAVING A LOT OF PROBLEMS/DIFFICULTIES« usually before noun a rough period is one in which you have a lot of problems or difficulties  (Don't be too angry with her - she's had a very rough time of it lately. | I've had a really rough day. | go through a rough patch (=experience problems or difficulties) | give sb/sth a rough ride (=a very difficult time))  (The bill may have gotten through the House but it's in for a rough ride in the Senate.) 6 »UNFAIR/UNLUCKY« unfair or unlucky  (it's rough on sb)  (It's rough on him, losing his job like that. | Two burglaries in one week? That's a bit rough!) 7 »WEATHER/SEA« with strong wind or storms  (In the evening we were sick, it was a very rough crossing.) 8 »NOT COMFORTABLE« uncomfortable, with difficult conditions  (a rough, pioneering way of life) 9 »VOICE/SOUND« a) not sounding soft or gentle, and often rather unpleasant or angry  (the rough voices of the workmen) b) having an unpleasant sound, especially because there is something wrong with a machine  (The clutch sounds rough, better get it checked.) 10 »SIMPLE/NOT WELL MADE« simple and often not very well made  (We constructed a rough shelter using whatever materials we could find.) 11 feel rough informal to feel ill  (I think I'd better go to bed - I'm feeling pretty rough.) 12 look rough informal to look untidy, dirty, or unhealthy  (We had been travelling for two days, and must have looked pretty rough.) 13 rough and ready simple, but just good enough for a particular purpose 14 rough justice punishment that is severe or unfair 15 a rough night a night when you did not sleep well 16 rough stuff spoken violent behaviour 17 a bit of rough BrE humorous someone from a lower social class than you, with whom you have a sexual relationship 18 give sb the rough side of your tongue BrE old-fashioned to speak angrily to someone - roughness n  (- see also rough diamond, rough paper, roughly) ~2 n 1 take the rough with the smooth to accept the bad things in life as well as the good ones 2 a picture drawn very quickly, not showing all the details 3 the rough uneven ground with long grass on a golf course 4 in rough BrE if you write or draw something in rough, you do it without paying attention to details or tidiness  (It's best to work in rough first, and then write it out neatly.)  (- see also diamond in the rough) ~3 v rough it informal to live for a short time in conditions that are not very comfortable  (Let's just take the tent - I don't mind roughing it for a bit.) rough sth in phr v to add something to a picture, without showing all the exact details  (If you look here you can see another angle for the arm roughed in.) rough sth out phr v to draw or write something, without showing all the exact details  (Iain was peering at a diagram the engineer had roughed out on his notepad.) rough sb up phr v informal to attack someone and hurt them by hitting them ~4 adv 1 sleep rough BrE to sleep outside with nothing to protect you from the weather  (sleeping rough on the street) 2 play rough to play in a fairly violent way  (- see also cut up rough cut1)