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

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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

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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

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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 discipline and economy of Rosenwald’s philanthropy also provide a chastening contrast to our current hidebound efforts to help people. — Harold Pollack, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chastening
  1. punitive
  2. condemnation
  3. punishing
  4. humiliating
  5. chastisement
  6. discrediting
  7. assessment
  8. humbling
Adjective
  • The resulting turn toward more punitive security policies makes slower institutional reform harder to sustain.
    — Robert Muggah, The Conversation, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The American-Saudi response, punitive in its immediate purpose, must also be understood as an effort to break Iran’s grip on the strait.
    — Bobby Ghosh, Time, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of punitive
Noun
  • Whether Tlaib is motivated by animus toward Moskowitz and Wasserman Schultz for their censure votes and condemnations of her rhetoric, or by support for their progressive opponents Larkin and Manley — or a combination — is unknown.
    — Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Missing from the 62-page report — at least in the view of some longtime department observers — was any reflection about officers’ use of less-lethal weapons that left hundreds of people injured and drew strong condemnations from human rights groups.
    — Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of condemnation
Verb
  • In Tarragona, an ancient Roman port city layered with two thousand years of history on the Mediterranean coast, thousands gathered along the waterfront to wait through a punishing late-summer heatwave for just over a minute of darkness.
    — Annissa Durar, Condé Nast Traveler, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Big Bend National Park, Texas — The towering cliffs, jagged mountain tops, and punishing desert climate of the Big Bend region in Texas have long proved to be the best barrier the United States could have with Mexico.
    — Ashley Killough, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 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
  • The release of his diaries though, revealed some thoroughly discrediting and upsetting details about Fauci's private beliefs.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 11 Aug. 2026
  • 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
Definition of discrediting
Noun
  • Today, most 16- and 17-year-olds who commit crimes are generally handled in juvenile court because policymakers recognize that adolescents differ from adults in judgment, impulse control, risk assessment, and susceptibility to peer influence.
    — Keith Wortz, Hartford Courant, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Auditors generally verified repayments by reinterviewing workers who had participated in earlier assessments.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of assessment
Verb
  • Again, that's what makes this slash to the guide so confusing and humbling.
    — Jeff Marks, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026
  • So far, the process of sourcing a new Italy coach has been humbling.
    — James Horncastle, New York Times, 28 July 2026
Definition of humbling

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chastening
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Cite this Entry

“Chastening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chastening. Accessed 16 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on chastening

Nglish: Translation of chastening for Spanish Speakers

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