War, law & rule

thug

Hindi ṭhag 'swindler, cheat' named the Thugs, gangs who robbed and strangled travellers on India's roads; by 1839 English used thug for any violent ruffian, and American hip-hop later made 'thug life' an attitude.

Weakest linkCertain

The road to English

From Hindi to Urdu

From Hindi to Marathi

From Hindi to Bengali

From English to Indian English

From English to American English

1600Hindi

Hops are evenly spaced; labels show the year each form is first attested.

Export “thug”

Embed “thug”

Save “thug”

Export “thug”

Embed “thug”

Save “thug”