chastening 1 of 3

adjective

as in punitive
inflicting, involving, or serving as punishment a chastening hour spent cleaning floors should discourage them from further pranks

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

chastening

2 of 3

noun

as in condemnation

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

chastening

3 of 3

verb

present participle of chasten
1
as in punishing
to inflict a penalty on for a fault or crime chastened the child with five minutes of sitting in the corner

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in humiliating
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes the unexpected loss to a second-rate player really chastened the tournament's top-seeded tennis star

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of chastening
Adjective
Sunderland are lurking and, perhaps for the first time under Howe’s management, Newcastle are in deficit, needing a response (yet again) after a chastening night in Europe. — George Caulkin, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2026
Verb
The Italian team arrived at Silverstone after a chastening Austria weekend, one race removed from Lewis Hamilton’s sensational win in Spain. — Alex Kalinauckas, New York Times, 15 July 2026 The American suffered a chastening 6-0, 6-0 defeat to Iga Świątek in the Wimbledon final eight weeks ago, the first time in the Open Era that a women’s player has failed to win a single game in the final at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. — Jamie Barton, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2025 Two months later, his side suffered a 5-2 defeat to Crystal Palace, followed by a chastening 5-0 loss away to Chelsea in May. — Roshane Thomas, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025 Market shakeouts are about testing risk tolerances, forcing a rethink of unexamined premises and, at times, chastening the arrogant. — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 3 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chastening
  1. punitive
  2. condemnation
  3. punishing
  4. humiliating
  5. chastisement
  6. discrediting
  7. assessment
  8. humbling
Adjective
  • Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 is widely viewed as a more durable trade statute than the administration’s previous strategies, and there are no limits on punitive tariff rates or the duration of the duties.
    — Kate Nishimura, Footwear News, 21 July 2026
  • Swinehart’s lawsuit seeks punitive and compensatory damages, although no amount is specified.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 18 July 2026
Definition of punitive
Noun
  • There’s always a ready audience, especially when the pesky Jewish state of Israel loudly refuses to join the chorus of condemnation and defends itself with force.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 25 July 2026
  • Advertisement Some of Takaichi’s past remarks around work have drawn condemnation from the National Defense Counsel for Victims of Karoshi, which is led by Hiroshi Kawahito, an attorney who represented Takahashi’s family.
    — Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 23 July 2026
Definition of condemnation
Verb
  • My dad, who lives in Cairo, told me the heat this summer has been punishing.
    — Malaka Gharib, NPR, 25 July 2026
  • For Yard Act’s 2022 debut, The Overload, the quartet chiseled flamboyant caricatures of British life and portrayed their flawed country with an abrasive, punishing tone.
    — Victoria Borlando, Pitchfork, 24 July 2026
Definition of punishing
Verb
  • The Iranians are now setting the terms of this conflict and are routinely humiliating the American president.
    — Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026
  • Instead of demanding personal fealty or humiliating them to assert personal dominance, Lincoln absorbed their egos and occasional slights, elevating their talents and turning his fiercest political adversaries into his most devoted champions.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 24 June 2026
Definition of humiliating
Noun
  • Case appealed, headed to Idaho Supreme Court Neither side was fully satisfied by the decision — or appeared to take Scott’s chastisement to heart.
    — Rose Evans Updated December 10, Idaho Statesman, 10 Dec. 2025
  • Frail, undernourished, lacking sufficient clothing, and shoeless, Kammo is overburdened by chores and in constant fear of chastisement.
    — JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 30 Oct. 2025
Definition of chastisement
Verb
  • Kiryl Pazniak, 49, who hosted a popular political show on YouTube, has been convicted on the charges of discrediting Belarus and forming an extremist organization, the group said — accusations widely used by authorities to stifle critical voices.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 July 2026
  • Defense attorney Tom Mesereau was an expert at discrediting witnesses, subjects told the filmmakers, but certain key witnesses, like Janet Arvizo, struggled to connect with the jury on their own.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 June 2026
Definition of discrediting
Noun
  • However, the assessment of assets has come into question since then.
    — Stephanie Yang, CNN Money, 24 July 2026
  • The county tax program referenced in the settlement is also expected to lead to inroads in the county’s ongoing legal battle with the Missouri State Tax Commission, which previously directed the county to roll back its 2023 assessments.
    — Ilana Arougheti July 23, Kansas City Star, 23 July 2026
Definition of assessment
Verb
  • Baseball can be very humbling at times, not just for sports bettors but also for the teams.
    — David Troy OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 July 2026
  • The business is humbling and unpredictable, played by people, not computers.
    — Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 16 July 2026
Definition of humbling

Browse Nearby Words

chasteness
chastening
chastens
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Chastening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chastening. Accessed 26 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on chastening

Nglish: Translation of chastening for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of aerie

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All