1
as in scolded
to criticize (someone) severely or angrily especially for personal failings
castigated him for his constant tardiness
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in attacked
to criticize harshly and usually publicly
a newspaper editorial castigating the city council for approving the project in the first place
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in punished
to inflict a penalty on for a fault or crime
a judge who believes in castigating criminals to the full extent of the law
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of castigated
Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony also castigated the deputies for mishandling the 14 calls Mary made to BSO in the year leading up to her death.
—
Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Chris Wright castigated European energy generated from wind farms as too costly.
—Ella Nilsen, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2025
The court gave the green light for those sweeping immigration operations to continue in Los Angeles — a decision that was praised by the White House and castigated by immigrant rights advocates.
—Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 10 Sep. 2025
Payne also castigated the department for failing to provide any of the documents that lawmakers had requested on June 3.
—Perry Vandell, AZCentral.com, 30 Aug. 2025
The big headline from the rescissions effort is that the government will cut off funds to PBS and NPR, which Republicans have long castigated as having a liberal agenda.
—Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 18 July 2025
Each regime, from the Pahlavi dynasty to the Islamic Republic, claimed to uphold human rights and castigated its predecessors as torturers, only to ratchet up the incarceration of political opponents.
—Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Chris Wright castigated European energy generated from wind farms as too costly.
—Ella Nilsen, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2025
The court gave the green light for those sweeping immigration operations to continue in Los Angeles — a decision that was praised by the White House and castigated by immigrant rights advocates.
—Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 10 Sep. 2025
Payne also castigated the department for failing to provide any of the documents that lawmakers had requested on June 3.
—Perry Vandell, AZCentral.com, 30 Aug. 2025
The big headline from the rescissions effort is that the government will cut off funds to PBS and NPR, which Republicans have long castigated as having a liberal agenda.
—Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 18 July 2025
Each regime, from the Pahlavi dynasty to the Islamic Republic, claimed to uphold human rights and castigated its predecessors as torturers, only to ratchet up the incarceration of political opponents.
—Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for castigated
Verb
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Rachel Dratch scolded Jimmy Fallon and Horatio Sanz for laughing while rehearsing the original Debbie Downer sketch on Saturday Night Live.—
Wesley Stenzel,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Oct. 2025
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There, she is repeatedly scolded, first by a testy parking attendant (Mark Stolzenberg), and then by a doctor (Bronstein), who warns Linda of consequences if her daughter doesn’t soon reach her target weight of fifty pounds.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Late Saturday and early Sunday, Russia attacked Ukraine’s power grid in an aim to degrade Ukrainian energy infrastructure ahead of winter.—
Stephen Sorace,
FOXNews.com,
12 Oct. 2025
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In August 2023, he was attacked by three fellow inmates, sustaining neck injuries that required medical treatment.—
Mitchell Peters,
Billboard,
12 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The coaches reacted quite differently — the Colts’ Shane Steichen punished Mitchell by playing him only sparingly a week later, while Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon lost his cool and erupted on the sideline, later apologizing.—
Zak Keefer,
New York Times,
11 Oct. 2025
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About 1 in 7 American companies has punished employees over social media comments related to Kirk’s killing.—
Jeremy Lott,
The Washington Examiner,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Augusta was a devout Christian who often lectured the Bible to her sons and blamed alcohol and women for the evils of the world, per the outlet.—
Jordana Comiter,
PEOPLE,
7 Oct. 2025
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Clarke and his business partner sold photographs and films, wrote and lectured about their adventures, and began treasure hunting.—
Danny Robb,
JSTOR Daily,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The View cohosts slammed the ongoing government shutdown.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Oct. 2025
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Posting on social media, people slammed the Democrat for attending a family friend's wedding abroad on October 9, just two days before a state of emergency was declared on October 11 due to the floods.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The president of the statewide North Carolina education system publicly reprimanded UNC’s Board of Trustees for their meddling weeks after Belichick’s hiring, and temporarily stripped the board of some authority.—
The Athletic Colleges staff,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
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Contestants on the latest season of Big Brother UK are being reprimanded for misgendering and using homophobic language towards other housemates.—
Mathew Rodriguez,
Them.,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Hostages and Missing Families Forum criticized Hamas earlier in the day for releasing only four of the 28 confirmed deceased hostages, calling it a breach of the agreement.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
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And while the council does have the power to reject commissioners, Jenkins’ move was scathingly criticized by the Coalition for Police Accountability, an advocacy group that first lobbied to establish the oversight body.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
13 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In August, a gunman who blamed COVID vaccines for his depression opened fire on the agency’s Atlanta campus, killing a police officer.—
Tom Bartlett,
The Atlantic,
13 Oct. 2025
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The woman long blamed for her role in the fall of the Aztec empire in 1521 is getting a modern makeover.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Castigated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/castigated. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.
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