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
Just days before the child’s death, Supervisor Arenas had castigated agency officials for concealing a November status report from the state that listed unresolved concerns.
—
Julia Prodis Sulek, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2026
Trump has repeatedly and publicly called for her release since his return to office last year, and he’s castigated Polis for not pardoning her or transferring her into federal custody.
—Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 11 Mar. 2026
Trump castigated the court for not spelling out what happens to the tens of billions of dollars the government has already collected.
—Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
Also, lawmakers repeatedly castigated the insurance executives for trying to pad their profits by denying or delaying approval of the care doctors say their patients need.
—Tami Luhby, CNN Money, 24 Jan. 2026
Trump has castigated European allies, particularly Denmark, for doing too little to protect the region.
—Didi Kirsten Tatlow, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025
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
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
Julia Prodis Sulek, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2026
Trump has repeatedly and publicly called for her release since his return to office last year, and he’s castigated Polis for not pardoning her or transferring her into federal custody.
—Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 11 Mar. 2026
Trump castigated the court for not spelling out what happens to the tens of billions of dollars the government has already collected.
—Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 20 Feb. 2026
Also, lawmakers repeatedly castigated the insurance executives for trying to pad their profits by denying or delaying approval of the care doctors say their patients need.
—Tami Luhby, CNN Money, 24 Jan. 2026
Trump has castigated European allies, particularly Denmark, for doing too little to protect the region.
—Didi Kirsten Tatlow, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025
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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for castigated
Verb
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Katie Porter scolded, Tom Steyer channeled Bernie.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2026
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The victim said he was singled out for laughing, scolded, and told to continue reading before being ordered into the hallway.—
Peter D'Oench,
CBS News,
5 May 2026
Verb
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Hours earlier, a vessel near the strait reported being attacked by several small boats.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
4 May 2026
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Iran warned Monday that any vessel attempting to transit the waterway would be attacked.—
May 4,
CBS News,
4 May 2026
Verb
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As part of these efforts, the US has ousted Venezuela’s former leader, expanded the US embargo on Cuba, prosecuted senior Mexican officials with alleged cartel ties, and punished Costa Rican journalists for criticizing a Washington ally.—
Jeronimo Gonzalez,
semafor.com,
7 May 2026
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If lawmakers or their families are found guilty of insider trading, they should be punished and treated like any other criminal — exactly like the rest of us.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
Verb
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For years, states such as New York and California have been run by politicians who seem to believe prosperity is permanent — an endless resource to be taxed a little more, regulated a little harder and lectured a little longer.—
Larry Clifton,
Sun Sentinel,
28 Apr. 2026
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Ratmoko is also a photographer, writer, and scholar who has lectured on intercultural communication schools including Yale University and the University of Zurich.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In 2022, similar detection work resulted in NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission, which slammed the DART spacecraft into the small asteroid Dimorphos orbiting the larger asteroid Didymos, changing the orbits of both child and parent around the sun.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
10 May 2026
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The president also slammed Schumer and his allies in the lengthy post.—
Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
10 May 2026
Verb
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Israeli leaders later disavowed the incident and said he would be reprimanded.—
Sam Metz,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
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The report noted that Tracey repeatedly removed his mask, something nurses interpreted in the report as noncompliance, and reprimanded him.—
Nichole Manna,
ProPublica,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Mira cried, when Andy criticized Nate for being unsupportive.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
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The Florida black bear, one of 16 subspecies of the American black bear, is often lauded as a Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission success story, though the agency was sharply criticized for staging a hunt of the state’s largest land mammal last year.—
Stephen Hudak,
The Orlando Sentinel,
4 May 2026
Verb
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Gatkhor Dual, an opposition official coordinating aid in Jonglei state, blamed county commissioner James Bol Makuei for blocking humanitarian access.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 Apr. 2026
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In a statement, a spokesperson for Angels In The Asylum blamed the closure on the film being unable to resolve financing issues with John Cairns and his company, Parkland Pictures.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Castigated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/castigated. Accessed 11 May. 2026.
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