PUNISHING Synonyms: 53 Similar and Opposite Words

punishing 1 of 2

adjective

as in punitive

Related Words

Relevance

punishing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of punish

as in penalizing

to inflict a penalty on for a fault or crime the child was punished for breaking dishes on purpose if caught, the thief will be severely punished

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of punishing

Adjective

The tragedy unfolds amid a punishing Western wildfire season driven by dry weather, scant snowpack, heat and erratic winds. — Los Angeles Times, 25 July 2026 Pair him with Sharpe, and the Nets could build one of the league’s most punishing center rotations on the glass. — C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 26 June 2026 Instead, left under the most punishing economic sanctions Cubans have known in their lives, the island may slowly wither and die. — Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 22 Mar. 2026 First introduced in 1944, the multi-purpose off-roader with portal axles has been used as the basis for military, emergency, and commercial vehicles in some of the most punishing environments around the world. — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 18 Dec. 2025 But the new government, led by former rebels who toppled Bashar al-Assad, is urging US lawmakers to repeal the most punishing sanctions isolating Syria from the world economy. — Natasha Bracken, semafor.com, 13 Nov. 2025

Verb

Seeing that gave Novick hope that the criminal justice system might serve a greater purpose beyond simply punishing those who break the law. — Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Oct. 2026 Both a federal district court and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the state was not targeting or punishing Catholic preschools because of their faith. — Preston Green Iii, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026 The king tides came knocking Then, in August, came the first big king tide that sent punishing waves slamming into houses along the boardwalk. — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026 The prospect of a wetter, stormier winter has Southern California on edge —punishing waves can cause significant coastal flooding and erosion, leading to landslides and cliff collapse. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 13 Oct. 2026 Across a vast and punishing Atlantic, the voyage exhausted the patience of its crew, but never the conviction of its captain. — Mackenzie Chase, The Washington Examiner, 12 Oct. 2026 Nusra also had a reputation for policing other armed groups and punishing criminal gangs, with swift convictions in its own Sharia courts, often followed by executions. — Ben Taub, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 And just a few weeks after Trump signed a bill into law, sponsored by the late US Senator Lindsey Graham, allowing for punishing sanctions to be imposed on any country that bought Russian oil, Washington has now become a customer itself. — Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 11 Oct. 2026 The 1970s oil crisis, restrictions on supersonic travel over land, and punishing operating costs led airlines to cancel dozens of orders, leaving Air France and British Airways as the only operators, with seven aircraft each. — Robb Report, 9 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for punishing

Adjective

Yet there are few examples in history of adversaries conceding to maximalist demands in the face of punitive bombing campaigns alone—even by the world’s greatest air force.

— Justin Bronk, Foreign Affairs, 13 Oct. 2026
An exploration of self-perception and a non-punitive confrontation with the past.

— Anna Marie de la Fuente, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of punitive

Verb

The terms of the injunction prevent the NCAA from penalizing Council for playing, or KU for playing him.

— Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2026
The committee said its investigation would continue as lawmakers consider legislation aimed at penalizing sanctuary jurisdictions and increasing cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

— Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of penalizing

Verb

In his appeal, Juszczyk also argued that fining players for pretending to drink beer was hypocritical given the NFL’s beer sponsorships.

— Rick Maese, Washington Post, 7 Oct. 2026
Players are simply not going to hold back because their coaches say, or the NFL is fining their beloved club.

— Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of fining

Verb

Witch fever, by this point in history, had become a mechanism for brutally regulating and disciplining female behavior, and doing so intergenerationally.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
But instead of disciplining the officer, officers were sent to arrest Gibbons.

— Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of disciplining

Verb

Multiple Republicans brought up Bottoms during the debate when criticizing their GOP opponent.

— Adam Beam, AJC.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Raman brought up Gates briefly while criticizing the mayor over the Los Angeles Police Department’s handling of federal immigration enforcement during Tuesday night’s debate.

— David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of criticizing

Verb

Cipparone also noted that the federal judge seemed to take Smith's apology as sincere, sentencing him to less time than what prosecutors recommended.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 Oct. 2026
Such a motion can allow prosecutors to request a sentence reduction after sentencing based on a defendant’s assistance to investigators.

— Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of sentencing

Verb

What can wait beyond the first day Some recovery tasks will continue beyond the first day, including disputing fraudulent accounts, correcting credit reports and following up with creditors.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026
During practice, Blanco runs the mariachi through the setlist, correcting an out-of-tune student and improving an intonation.

— Jessica Hill, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of correcting

Verb

So, by making this offer to you, you side-step chastising her and instead give feedback that can help you both to have better visits in the future.

— R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026
Unifor officials in Canada are chastising Stellantis, while United Auto Workers leaders in the United States are showing measured hope for Belvidere.

— Liam Rappleye, Freep.com, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of chastising

Browse Nearby Words

punishes

punishing

punishment

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Punishing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punishing. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of punishing

adjective

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

jilt

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes