Synonyms for punish
ˈpʌn ɪʃpun·ish

WiktionaryRate these synonyms:4.0 / 2 votes

1. punishverb

   Synonyms:
   castigate

2. punishverb

   To cause to suffer for crime or misconduct, to administer disciplinary action.

   Synonyms:
   castigate

3. punishverb

   To cause great harm to. (a punishing blow)

   Synonyms:
   castigate

4. punishverb

   To dumb down severely or to the point of uselessness or near-uselessness.

   Synonyms:
   castigate

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:3.0 / 2 votes

1. punish

   Avenge and revenge, once close synonyms, are now far apart in meaning. To avenge is to visit some offense with punishment, in order to vindicate the righteous, or to uphold and illustrate the right by the suffering or destruction of the wicked. "And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian," Acts vii, 24. To revenge is to inflict harm or suffering upon another through personal anger and resentment at something done to ourselves. Avenge is unselfish; revenge is selfish. Revenge, according to present usage, could not be said of God. To retaliate may be necessary for self-defense, without the idea of revenge. Compare REVENGE.

   Synonyms:
   avenge, retaliate, revenge, vindicate, visit

   Preposition:
   Avenge on or upon (rarely, avenge oneself of) a wrong-doer.

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. punish

   Synonyms:
   chastise, castigate, chasten, correct, whip, scourge

   Antonyms:
   reward, recompense, remunerate, indemnify

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:3.2 / 5 votes

1. punish, penalize, penaliseverb

   impose a penalty on; inflict punishment on

   "The students were penalized for showing up late for class"; "we had to punish the dog for soiling the floor again"

   Synonyms:
   penalize, penalise

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. punishverb

   Synonyms:
   chastise, castigate, lash, chasten, discipline, correct, scourge, whip

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. punishverb

   Synonyms:
   chastise, castigate, chasten, discipline

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "punish":

   punishing, penalise, penalize, sanction, punishment, suppress, chastise, flog, smite, criminalize, suppression, repress, penalties

Suggested Resources

1. punish

   Song lyrics by punish -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by punish on the Lyrics.com website.

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How to use punish in a sentence?

1. Idris Nassan:

   Not being able to participate in events or discussions is a stigma and for our society it is a big deal. Prison is the last resort, this is because we want to change the culture and not just punish the crime. We want men to understand violence against women is not socially accepted any longer.

2. Republican Sen.:

   The last two years have fundamentally changed the dynamics of this debate [on the tax code], as we have seen the weaponization of the IRS, as we have seen the Obama administration using the IRS in a partisan manner to punish it’s political enemies.

3. Jim Morrison:

   Some people surrender their freedom willingly but others are forced to surrender it. Imprisonment begins with birth. Society, parents they refuse to allow you to keep the freedom you were born with. There are subtle ways to punish a person for daring to feel. You see that everyone around you has destroyed his true feeling nature. You imitate what you see.

4. Marianna Wang:

   Although my clients are disappointed, they are not surprised, unfortunately, our penal laws and system frequently do not properly punish the acts of so many abusive men in power.Cuomo’s conduct was nonetheless unlawful and deeply harmful to the women who were subjected to it, as the Attorney General and Assembly found in their reports.

5. Roy Blunt:

   I believe the constitutional purpose of impeachment is to remove a president from office, not to punish a person after Senate GOP leaders have left office, no consideration was given to impeach President Nixon when he left office in 1974. The Constitution hasn't changed and the Congress should not set a new, destructive precedent.