as in hulk
a big clumsy often slow-witted person
I wish he wouldn't bring over here that bunch of palookas he calls his friends
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Recent Examples of palooka
Don’t be a palooka, start Nacua.
—
Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 12 Dec. 2024
One year after the Academy bafflingly ignored his work in Sideways, Giamatti finally scored his first Oscar nomination for his purely entertaining performance as boxing manager Joe Gould in Ron Howard’s proudly old-fashioned Depression-era palooka drama.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2024
Sylvester Stallone's underdog tale about a struggling palooka given one shot at the heavyweight championship is a stirring sports movie with a level of charm and sweetness that dissipated in the rounds (and rounds) of sequels that followed.
—Brian Lowry, CNN, 25 July 2019
All this real guts and glory in Philadelphia, yet one of the big tourist attractions is to run up the Art Museum steps the way a palooka named Rocky Balboa did on the silver screen.
—Bill Livingston, cleveland.com, 1 Jan. 2018
The jokes (by screenwriters Van Robichaux and Evan Susser) have all the wit of a punch-drunk palooka.
—Michael O'Sullivan, The Denver Post, 17 Feb. 2017
The jokes, by screenwriters Van Robichaux and Evan Susser, have all the wit of a punch-drunk palooka.
—Michael O'Sullivan, The Mercury News, 17 Feb. 2017
The jokes (by screenwriters Van Robichaux and Evan Susser) have all the wit of a punch-drunk palooka.
—Michael O'Sullivan, The Denver Post, 17 Feb. 2017
Without it, director Phillipe Falardeau's film would be a fairly unremarkable, fairly familiar ride, telling the tale of a big-hearted but undisciplined palooka whose biggest hurdle in life is his own bad judgment.
—Mike Scott, NOLA.com, 17 May 2017
Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 12 Dec. 2024
One year after the Academy bafflingly ignored his work in Sideways, Giamatti finally scored his first Oscar nomination for his purely entertaining performance as boxing manager Joe Gould in Ron Howard’s proudly old-fashioned Depression-era palooka drama.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2024
Sylvester Stallone's underdog tale about a struggling palooka given one shot at the heavyweight championship is a stirring sports movie with a level of charm and sweetness that dissipated in the rounds (and rounds) of sequels that followed.
—Brian Lowry, CNN, 25 July 2019
All this real guts and glory in Philadelphia, yet one of the big tourist attractions is to run up the Art Museum steps the way a palooka named Rocky Balboa did on the silver screen.
—Bill Livingston, cleveland.com, 1 Jan. 2018
The jokes (by screenwriters Van Robichaux and Evan Susser) have all the wit of a punch-drunk palooka.
—Michael O'Sullivan, The Denver Post, 17 Feb. 2017
The jokes, by screenwriters Van Robichaux and Evan Susser, have all the wit of a punch-drunk palooka.
—Michael O'Sullivan, The Mercury News, 17 Feb. 2017
The jokes (by screenwriters Van Robichaux and Evan Susser) have all the wit of a punch-drunk palooka.
—Michael O'Sullivan, The Denver Post, 17 Feb. 2017
Without it, director Phillipe Falardeau's film would be a fairly unremarkable, fairly familiar ride, telling the tale of a big-hearted but undisciplined palooka whose biggest hurdle in life is his own bad judgment.
—Mike Scott, NOLA.com, 17 May 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for palooka
Noun
-
Like the ghostly hulk of the Titanic below the surface of the sea, Northbrook Court is a quiet and cavernous relic — at the bottom of the retail food chain.—
David Petitti,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Apr. 2025
-
The first night, the characters are menaced by a bald hulk in overalls, wearing a clown mask with the mouth area (including his teeth) smashed in.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
25 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
But the Phillies are skidding, losers of four in a row.—
Anthony Stitt,
Forbes.com,
2 June 2025
-
The seventh-seeded Volunteers advanced to play the loser of Saturday’s Texas Tech vs. UCLA game in an elimination game Sunday.—
Compiled From Wire Reports,
The Orlando Sentinel,
31 May 2025
Noun
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What’s more, the double-stitched seams and baffle box design keep lumps at bay.—
Nashia Baker,
Architectural Digest,
28 May 2025
-
That was a big moment, that was a big lump of publicity.—
Jack Royston,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 May 2025
Noun
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The toilet does the heavy work automatically with an electromechanical system, so all the owner of said waste has to do is grab the sealed, odorless bag and drop it in the garbage, much like a mutt mitt.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
15 May 2025
-
Remember when this series started, the Nuggets were heavy underdogs, viewed as mutts.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
11 May 2025
Noun
-
New threats emerge, including a ruthless new villain (Bill Skarsgård) and a blind assassin from Wick’s past, played by Donnie Yen in a standout performance.—
Emily Blackwood,
People.com,
6 June 2025
-
Nicholas Hoult plays the film’s villain, the megalomaniac super-genius Lex Luthor.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
5 June 2025
Noun
-
Fans can also look forward to performances by the iconic Silver Spurs Quadrille, the adorable antics of kids competing in Mutton Bustin’, and plenty of laughs courtesy of the ever-entertaining rodeo clowns.—
Joe Rassel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
28 May 2025
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His wife, Susan, a sweet woman with short grey hair, worked as a dental hygienist and performed as a clown named Jubilee at hospitals, nursing homes, parties — even the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.—
Jennifer Berry Hawes,
ProPublica,
19 May 2025
Noun
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That included building a short block wall to separate the deck from the yard — and prevent skunks, possums and other critters from creeping under the deck — build an open fence to surround the property, and add a swale to retain rainwater.—
Caron Golden,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 Apr. 2025
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Then other critters came to feast on the skunk’s leftovers, the incredible video shows.—
Brooke Baitinger,
Idaho Statesman,
9 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Palooka.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/palooka. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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