as in penalty
suffering, loss, or hardship imposed in response to a crime or offense
he is serving five years in prison as punishment for aggravated assault
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Recent Examples of punishment
Naji Marshall went after Jusuf Nurkic in 'hostile manner' outside locker room
What is the punishment for driving under the influence in Arizona?
—
Olivia Rose, The Arizona Republic, 28 Dec. 2024
The boys also had restricted access to water, and food was often withheld as a punishment, prosecutors said.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 27 Dec. 2024
But Washington seems unlikely to take further action during the final weeks of the Biden administration, and the EU has until now failed to reach consensus on what should be done—not least because Hungary is poised to veto meaningful punishments.
—Christian Caryl, Foreign Affairs, 26 Dec. 2024
And perhaps watching a few games from the media level would do O’Connor good — not as punishment, but a break.
—Rob Rossi, The Athletic, 28 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for punishment 
Olivia Rose, The Arizona Republic, 28 Dec. 2024
The boys also had restricted access to water, and food was often withheld as a punishment, prosecutors said.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 27 Dec. 2024
But Washington seems unlikely to take further action during the final weeks of the Biden administration, and the EU has until now failed to reach consensus on what should be done—not least because Hungary is poised to veto meaningful punishments.
—Christian Caryl, Foreign Affairs, 26 Dec. 2024
And perhaps watching a few games from the media level would do O’Connor good — not as punishment, but a break.
—Rob Rossi, The Athletic, 28 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for punishment
Thesaurus Entries Near punishment
Cite this Entry
“Punishment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punishment. Accessed 17 Jan. 2025.
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