Describing a person as ‘rough’

[hannall]

I think this is incredibly offensive, yet I hear people do this all the time! Oh Sandra, she’s nice but a bit rough. Oh Eric, be careful he’s a big rough!

What does it even mean? I can’t actually believe how often I hear it and people don’t seem to think twice about using that description!

I haven't heard that saying for years but it used to mean unpolished or behaving in an uncouth manner.

Watch married at 1st sight. Alot of rough on there

Why do you think it's offensive if you don't even know what it means?

Someone lacking refinement and social grace.

Not offensive if it is true.

Someone who burps out loud, swears, shouts, doesn’t have grace and politeness

for me being rough or not is nothing to do with class or money - basic manners and decency makes someone a good person

I’d just take it to mean a person who can’t be relied on to dress properly, not swear or bring up inappropriate topics in polite company, that sort of thing. If they were going to attack me or steal my car then I’d expect a more offensive word to be used.

If you're genuinely hearing this all the time, it means you know a lot of unpleasant snobs.

Well it is insulting as to me it means low class and poor manners.
(Not related to their birth station or financial status, just their habits and way of presenting themselves. )
So I would only say it if I was being judgy, and likely only to family members.
But I'd be thinking it on the inside 😅
See also, coarse, uncouth, uncultured, impolite, indecorous.

Not necessarily rude or unpleasant, but 'just not our sort darling'

So this one is different. If said in the context of 'careful playing with him, he's a bit rough' and in front of the child or his parent then either they are breathtakingly rude or they mean rough as in not being gentle. That's totally different to ' don't play with freddie, his family is rough AF'

You sound a bit precious. Do you have a better description? Or maybe you don’t mix with ‘rough’ types?

@KrisAkabusi well it’s always said in a very derogatory way but I’m never absolutely clear what ‘rough’ is supposed to mean!

But it's in the dictionary.

Have you never bothered to look it up?

It’s not that mysterious, OP. Surely if you hear it all the time, at least some of the time you know the people being described as ‘rough’, and can this figure out what is meant? I’m assuming Sandra in your example doesn’t speak cut-glass RP, isn’t married to Roops whom she met at Oxford over a game of croquet, and doesn’t have a brace of Pony Club daughters?

The opposite of 'polished' - rude, poor manners, no social graces.

OP, as the majority of people are considerate of other people around them, do you think if someone says the F word every-other-word, it is it fair to describe them as, "a bit rough"?

My mum says this all the time and I cannot get her to stop. Normally in a sentance like “he’s a bit rough but he’s a lovely man” or “she’s a bit rough but does a good job”. It’s pure snobbery, expresses surprise that someone who is rough (basically working class in this use), can also be nice, reliable, good at their job, etc. She doesn’t seem to understand that just because she’s expressing something good about someone, doesn’t mean she’s not being insufferably snobbish!

’A bit rough around the edges’ = not that offensive.
’As rough as a badger’s arse’ = hard to take that positively!

I would think it's a combination of social class and characteristics that PP described. Someone may come from a rough area but not be rough themselves. Trashy would be similar. A rough person curses a lot, speaks loudly, makes crass comments and more importantly is likely to challenge someone over something where a less rough person wouldn't. That could mean getting into a fight or shouting at the staff in a shop over something. Trouble making, I suppose. Clothes are relevant too.

It is definitely not a nice thing to say about a person.

It can mean a variety of things.

Bad mannered, the opposite of polished.
Low 'breeding', from a 'bad family'
Aggressive, prone to violence.
Unattractive.
In bad shape e.g. hungover.

The level of offensiveness varies with the meaning.

The boys that drive their fiestas around our village with a disregard for anyone's safety.
The people who are not bothered about parenting their feral teenagers.
Yes very rough and no apologies.

Lacking in social graces, loud, uses bad language, wears jeans with holes and hoodies, has tattoos and piercings. (Yes, I'm snobby and try to avoid these types).

Someone described my neighbour as rough- he can’t keep a job, drinks day and night, chain smokes, swears constantly, is loud and reminds me of frank gallagher off shameless 😂

I agree it is over-used, OP, and not very nice. I don't think highly of people who describe other people like this without much thought.
It should only be used in situations where it's totally accurate, in my view.