as in to punish
to inflict a penalty on for a fault or crime
the player was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct
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Recent Examples of penalize
Those efforts have been hindered by federal court lawsuits that allege Rubio's determinations penalized the activists' free speech.
—
Kiki Intarasuwan, CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
Employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers without a CDL will be penalized with a $50,000 fine.
—Maya Wilkins, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
Sunday saw many laggards penalized for failure to obey the national summons.
—Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 1 Apr. 2026
The court made clear that the government cannot use funding as a lever to influence or penalize the press, whether as a national news service or a local newsroom.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for penalize
Kiki Intarasuwan, CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
Employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers without a CDL will be penalized with a $50,000 fine.
—Maya Wilkins, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
Sunday saw many laggards penalized for failure to obey the national summons.
—Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 1 Apr. 2026
The court made clear that the government cannot use funding as a lever to influence or penalize the press, whether as a national news service or a local newsroom.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for penalize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for penalize
punish
Verb
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Moderate exercise helps, but high-intensity overtraining can raise cortisol further, worth knowing if punishing workouts are already part of a stressed routine.—
Allison Palmer,
Miami Herald,
1 Apr. 2026
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On Wednesday morning, that tally stood at a hefty seven hundred and thirty-four, with cases ranging from the President’s immigration policies to his dismantling of disfavored agencies to his effort to punish law firms to his ban on transgender athletes in women’s sports.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
1 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Penalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penalize. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
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