self-castigation

noun

self-cas·​ti·​ga·​tion ˌself-ˌka-stə-ˈgā-shən How to pronounce self-castigation (audio)
plural self-castigations
: punishment, reproof, or criticism of oneself
… that inner voice—in women's guilt and self-castigation around selfishness today.Lila MacLellan
… beaten down by a steady stream of self-castigations.Nina Schuyler
self-castigate intransitive verb
self-castigated; self-castigating; self-castigates
a desire to self-castigate

Examples of self-castigation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web And for that kind of compromise, self-castigations far exceed any possible public ones. Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 18 July 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'self-castigation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1759, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of self-castigation was in 1759

Dictionary Entries Near self-castigation

Cite this Entry

“Self-castigation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-castigation. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

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