How to Use punishment in a Sentence

punishment

noun
  • I took away my daughter's car keys as a punishment for her bad behavior.
  • The punishments that the government has inflicted on the protesters are severe and unjust.
  • Some religions teach that wicked people will suffer eternal punishment in hell after they die.
  • The punishment for murder is life imprisonment.
  • Way overkill, just … the punishment did not fit the crime.
    Lexy Perez, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Apr. 2022
  • The punishment paved the way for the team to change ownership and Ballmer’s purchase in the spring of 2014.
    Andrew Greif, Los Angeles Times, 17 Jan. 2024
  • The punishment amounts to a slap on the wrist for this year’s draft from April 25-27 in Detroit.
    Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2024
  • It is not known how long the men will be held or the extent of their punishment.
    Walter Pavlo, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
  • How and when Stone would make good on his punishment was left up to him.
    Bill Koch, USA TODAY, 22 Sep. 2022
  • Now, the league has come down with a massive punishment.
    James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 May 2025
  • West's punishment would range between five to 99 years to life in prison.
    Danielle Bacher, Peoplemag, 28 Aug. 2023
  • Puma, though, was hoping to serve his punishment at home and avoid a fine.
    Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 22 Mar. 2023
  • This too felt like a harsh punishment and may have been some sort of attempt at evening things up by the man in charge.
    Joseph O'Sullivan, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024
  • Or is Harrow’s act a form of self-punishment for past sins?
    Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Mar. 2022
  • But the punishment was far above the six and a half years requested by his defense lawyers.
    J. Edward Moreno, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2024
  • Was this punishment the worst the Academy could hand out?
    Maria Puente, USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2022
  • The charge is a third-degree felony in Texas, with a possible punishment of two to 10 years in prison.
    Mark Heim | Mheim@al.com, al, 12 Dec. 2022
  • To me as an artist not able to create that in itself is punishment enough.
    Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE.com, 14 Mar. 2022
  • In 1989, as the boys faced charges in the attack, an outraged city thirsted for their punishment.
    Suzette Hackney, USA TODAY, 6 July 2023
  • The archbishop will bless the sword and hand it to the monarch with the injunction that it should be used for the protection of good and the punishment of evil.
    Patrick Smith, NBC News, 4 May 2023
  • The juror chose the option of attending the first day of the trial as punishment.
    oregonlive, 28 Jan. 2023
  • Trump also called for swift and harsh punishment for Abe’s killer.
    Anchorage Daily News, 8 July 2022
  • Trump also called for swift and harsh punishment for Abe's killer.
    Arkansas Online, 10 July 2022
  • The earbuds are well made and should withstand a certain amount of punishment.
    Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 9 Apr. 2022
  • In Greek thought, Hades is not a place of punishment; it’s where the dead are separated from the living.
    al, 16 Apr. 2022
  • The archbishop blessed the sword and handed it to Charles with the injunction that it should be used for the protection of good and the punishment of evil.
    Leila Sackur, NBC News, 6 May 2023
  • The punishment was shaving the top of his head, and Whitney did the honors prior to Game 3, much to the delight of the Edmonton crowd.
    Jace Evans, USA TODAY, 5 June 2022
  • In the Book of Jonah, the Israelite prophet spends three days in the belly of a whale as divine punishment, before being spit back on the shore.
    Nathan Burstein, The New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2023
  • Something from your past may be circling back for closure, not punishment.
    Meghan Rose, Glamour, 1 May 2025
  • The point of the proceedings before Dugan was to establish that and, if appropriate, what his punishment should be.
    New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 26 Apr. 2025

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

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