Synonyms for punish
Most common
Definitions
- v. 1
To cause (a child, student, or someone else being looked after, or a suspect or criminal) to suffer for crime or misconduct, to administer disciplinary action, typically by an authority or a person in authority (for example: a parent, teacher, or police officer).
If a prince violates the law, then he must be punished like an ordinary person.
Related words
- Word family
- punishable punishing punishment
Forms
- Past participle
- punished
e.g. punished → chastised, penalized, castigated, disciplined…
Choose the right word
Castigate and chastise refer strictly to corporal punishment, tho both are somewhat archaic; correct and punish are often used as euphemisms in preference to either. Punish is distinctly retributive in sense; chastise, partly retributive, and partly corrective; chasten, wholly corrective.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- discipline Discipline is the most important part of success.
- penalize Algeria shouldn't penalize its poorest categories.
- chastise Be patient, God will chastise you and you'll understand!
- torture His lecture on chemistry was nothing but torture.
- avenge He killed him in order to avenge his father's death.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| punish | rising | |
| discipline | steady | |
| penalize | falling | |
| chastise | rising | |
| pillory | steady | |
| torture | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- whip1, lash1
- 6 letters
- avenge2, amerce
- 7 letters
- correct2, torture2, scourge1, pillory3, chasten2
- 8 letters
- penalize3, chastise2, mistreat2, penalise
- 9 letters
- castigate3
- 10 letters
- discipline3
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (avenge2 = 2 syllables).