1. tough guy - Noun
2. tough guy - Adjective
tough guy (plural tough guys)
(set phrase) A man known for his physical and/or emotional resilience.
tough-guy (comparative more tough-guy, superlative most tough-guy)
Resembling or characteristic of a tough guy.
tough-guy
"I tell you," he [Milosevic] continued, "Izetbegovic has earned Sarajevo by not abandoning it. He's one tough guy. It's his". These words were probably the most astonishing and unexpected of the conference. Richard Holbrooke
My father was a dreamer - my hero. He was a smart, tough guy from Poland, a cutter of lady's handbags, an old socialist-unionist who always considered himself a failure. His big line was: 'Don't end up like me.' Alan King
I like to pretend that I'm a tough guy. It's kind of an admission of defeat if I have to ask for help - or even kindness. But if it doesn't come, at some point I snap and demand it. Mary-Louise Parker
I wanna be in action movies, I wanna be the tough guy... I wanna scare people. Richard Schiff
A common misperception of me is... that I am a tough, rough northerner, which I suppose I am really. But I'm pretty mild-mannered most of the time. It's the parts that you play I guess. I don't mind it. I'm not a tough guy. I'd like to act as a fair, easy-going, kind man at some point. Sean Bean
My dad was a Marine. He was one of the Montford Point Marines. Those are the equivalent of the Tuskegee Airmen for Marines. He's a tough, tough guy. Larry Elder