punish

Meaning

1. To cause to suffer for crime or misconduct, to administer disciplinary action.
2. To treat harshly and unfairly.
3. (colloquial) To handle or beat severely; to maul.
4. (colloquial) To consume a large quantity of.

Synonyms

chastise

penalize

discipline

chasten

castigate

beat

hurt

penalise

torture

fine

sentence

scourge

strike

hit

injure

harm

thrash

torment

correct

whip

avenge

reprimand

execute

beat up

amerce

trouble

attack

👊

law

admonish

scold

smite

mistreat

overpower

ill-treat

persecute

punishment

instruct

command

judge

🧑‍⚖️

teach a lesson

reproach

teach someone a lesson

abuse

pain

retribution

revenge

give someone a lesson

payment

💸

pig

🐖

plan

punished

rebuke

regulation

repent

reply

reprove

rule

ruler

sanction

settle

share

slosh

smack

soak

spank

steer

strafe

strangle

strike down

suffer

suppress

swat

throw

treat

upbraid

vindicate

wallop

weed out

worry

wound

handle roughly

make suffer

pass judgement

make sad

crime

cause suffering

give trouble to

drag about

inflict punishment

inflict punishment upon

answer

appoint

authority

bang

blow

cane

charge

chew

chime

clank

clap

👏

clink

clip

clobber

condemn

control

crucify

cure

decide

dispose

disposition

dominion

doom

false

fix

flog

forbid

govern

harass

impose

imprison

inconvenience

inflict

jangle

judgement

keelhaul

kill

🔪🩸👤

knock

knock about

lambast

lash

lashes

manage

molest

order

pay back

Hyphenated as

pun‧ish

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈpʌnɪʃ/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: punischen

In summary

From Middle English punischen, from Anglo-Norman, Old French puniss-, stem of some of the conjugated forms of punir, from Latin puniō (“I inflict punishment upon”), from poena (“punishment, penalty”); see pain. Displaced Old English wītnian and (mostly, in this sense) wrecan.