punitive
adjective
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Punitive and the Law
Punitive is an important word in the law. When you sue a person or company for having wronged you in some way, you normally ask for something of value equal to what you were deprived of by the other party. But when the defendant has done something particularly bad, you may also ask for punitive damages, money over and above the actual cost of the harm done, intended to teach the defendant a lesson. Punitive damages are fairly rare, but when they're actually granted they may be as much as four times the size of the basic damages.
Examples of punitive in a Sentence
Ted Johnson, Deadline, 20 Feb. 2026
The committee recommended punitive measures against Sandy and 16 other named officials.
—Ed Davey The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 19 Feb. 2026
Among the documents is an email exchange from 2009 in which Mandelson appears to discuss Britain’s plans to impose an additional tax on bankers’ bonuses as a punitive, one-off measure following the crash.
—Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 19 Feb. 2026
The shift of Gardner to a standard contract leaves the Heat with enough room under the punitive NBA luxury tax to add another player to the standard contract on a similar pro-rated share of the veteran-minimum salary, should Rozier be waived.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 18 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for punitive
Cite this Entry
“Punitive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/punitive. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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punitive
adjective
Legal Definition
punitive
adjective
