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Glite Dictionary
to punish

to punish

821 1.0
Make someone suffer for doing something wrong
  • verb
  • /ˈpʌnɪʃ/
translation icon : castigar
  • Inflation works for the wealthy, punishes the middle class and the poor.
  • punish criminals
  • get punished
  • punish for a crime

The first way they punish is by withholding.

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Examples

  • He felt it was important to punish those who cheated during the exam.

  • So she is now choosing to punish her child for taking too long.

    Smosh Pit

  • And, and we're not going to punish our way out of it.

    Harvard University

  • If you want to punish me for it, go ahead.

    Love Don’t Fade Away (2023)

  • The community wanted the kids to be punished for what their parents did.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • You need to be punished for your insolence.

    Jack Be Nimble (2022)

  • Then there would be no way to detect and punish crime in the corridors.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Although their commanders frown upon this, they have no formal power to punish students for such behavior.

    Academic text (1990)

  • Indians often recalled being beaten or otherwise punished for speaking tribal languages.

    Academic text (1999)

  • Are we helping them aim for an exemplary mark, or do we want to punish them for some misdeed?

    Academic text (2011)

Synonyms

to teach someone a lesson
vsto punish
  • Informal
139 4.2

Punish someone so they learn not to do it again

aims for causing suffering rather than producing learning
to correct
vsto punish
65 7.7

To scold or punish someone to improve their behavior

aims to cause suffering rather than only improve behaviour
to penalize
vsto punish
  • US
60 5.5

Punish someone or make them suffer a loss for breaking a rule

is the general act of causing suffering for wrongdoing
to discipline
vsto punish
47 3.4

To punish or train someone so they follow rules

focuses on causing suffering rather than training for obedience
to give someone hell
vsto punish
  • Informal
37 8.1

To scold someone very strongly for something they did

is the neutral act of causing suffering without informal hostility
to crucify
vsto punish
  • NSFW
32 8.0

To criticize someone or something very harshly, often in public

involves causing suffering but not necessarily extreme public cruelty
to castigate
vsto punish
  • Formal
14 8.8

To criticize or punish someone very harshly

is broader and need not be as extreme or harsh
to let someone have it
vsto punish
  • Informal
11 8.1

To angrily tell someone off

is the broader act of causing suffering, not necessarily violent anger
to make an example of
vsto punish
9 6.5

To punish someone to warn other people not to do the same

focuses on causing suffering to the offender, not on warning others
to have someone's hide
vsto punish
  • Informal
7.9

To punish or scold someone strongly for making a mistake

is the act of causing suffering, not only a threat or revenge
to fix someone's wagon
vsto punish
  • Offensive
9.6

Punish someone for something they did to you

is about causing suffering without the added revenge motive

Antonyms

to forgive
∞ 1.4

To stop feeling angry at someone or yourself for a mistake

to reward
328 1.3

To give something to someone to thank them for doing something good

How Severe

to torture
  • Offensive
582 5.7
to penalize
  • US
60 5.5
to punish
821 1.0
to chastise
  • Formal
33 7.6
to admonish
31 6.8

Surface Forms

punish infinitive
punished past
punished past participle
punishing present participle
punishes third person singular

Etymology

The word punish comes from the Latin verb punire, which comes from poena meaning 'penalty'. Think of a sports 'penalty': to punish someone is to give them a penalty or make them suffer for doing something wrong.