raunch

[rawnch, rahnch] / rɔntʃ, rɑntʃ /

NOUN

obscenity

Synonyms

STRONG

abomination affront atrocity bawdiness blight blueness coarseness curse dirt dirtiness evil filth filthiness foulness grossness immodesty impropriety impurity indecency indelicacy lewdness licentiousness lubricity offense outrage porn pornography profaneness profanity prurience ribaldry salacity scatology scurrility sleaze smut smuttiness swearword vileness vulgarity wrong

WEAK

X-rating dirty name dirty word four-letter word scurrilousness suggestiveness vulgarness

Antonyms

STRONG

blessing cleanliness compliment decency delight goodness happiness joy kindness modesty morality pleasantry purity right sterility tastefulness virtue

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

If Hulu’s “Shoresy” is the poster child for successfully balancing raunch and heart, “Ted” is on the opposite end — crass and lazy.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 27, 2026

Writer-actor-director Harold Ramis believes that the clean-talking, gross-free “Ghostbusters” may break forever the reign of raunch that has plagued youth comedy since “Animal House.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2021

Yet despite the song’s uninhibited raunch, its popularity was partly earned from one of the music industry’s oldest bugaboos: self-censorship.

From New York Times • Oct. 27, 2020

This may be because we usually see these two cultures situated oppositionally: either raunch is a path of resistance away from conservative religiosity or vice versa.

From Salon • Oct. 22, 2020

Ali Wong: A writer for ABC’s “Fresh Off the Boat,” Wong mixes raunch, pop culture and stories about growing up with Chinese and Vietnamese parents in her energetic stand-up.

From Washington Post • Mar. 31, 2016