PUNISHED Synonyms: 38 Similar and Opposite Words

punished

verb

past tense of punish

as in penalized

to inflict a penalty on for a fault or crime the child was punished for breaking dishes on purpose if caught, the thief will be severely punished

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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 punished This is the president of the United States talking about her case … saying 'These people will be punished. — Rachel Treisman, NPR, 3 Aug. 2026 Upon learning of their retreat, Calvinus punished his troops by reportedly executing one-in-10 men from two units before setting his sights on the rebels. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 30 July 2026 Take Samsung, which posted a record $62 billion profit, a 19-fold increase, and then saw stocks sell off, or Meta, punished after another quarter of growing revenue. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 30 July 2026 Trump has been vocal, as recently as this month, about wanting ABC to be punished. — Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 30 July 2026 The players will not be punished, according to a league source. — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 30 July 2026 In a world in which much more egregious rules will be broken on a random Tuesday, Carter is being punished for signing with an NFL agent and accepting an airline ticket. — Trey Wallace Outkick, FOXNews.com, 29 July 2026 While it can be attributed to fear of appearing lazy or being punished for finishing work too quickly, there has been diminishing returns for over performing. — Kate Wieczorek, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026 Gang Seong brings Ri Eung-ryeong back to North Korea, where he is presumably punished for his defection. — Kayti Burt, Time, 27 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for punished

Verb

One play after Burns was flagged for being offside, the offense was penalized for a false start.

— Dan Duggan, New York Times, 30 July 2026
In 2016, the Seahawks — when Canales served as a wide receivers coach — were penalized for the intensity and contact during an OTAs workout.

— Mike Kaye July 26, Charlotte Observer, 26 July 2026

Definition of penalized

Verb

Seattle Storm minority co-owner Celeste Keaton was previously fined and suspended for five games after confronting an XX-XY supporter who sat courtside during a game between the Storm and Fever.

— Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026
Keaton was fined and suspended for five home games by the league for her role in the incident, according to ESPN.

— Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of fined

Verb

Colt’s father, Colin Gray, was sentenced to 15 years in prison two days later, as his lawyer announced plans to appeal.

— Isabel Rosales, CNN Money, 2 Aug. 2026
Manguchei pleaded to conspiracy to possess a firearm and ammunition as a felon, and was sentenced to 44 months in prison.

— Guthrie Scrimgeour, Rolling Stone, 2 Aug. 2026

Definition of sentenced

Verb

Prosecutors secured a prison sentence for Lopez for alleged fraud, but in the appeals process, a judge ruled that she had been wrongly convicted.

— Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 3 Aug. 2026
Kendall Ramsey, 28, was convicted Friday of first-degree murder in the killings of Kayla Holder, 23, and their infant son, Kainoa Ramsey, according to Hawaii News Now, KHON2 and the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

— Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of convicted

Verb

Musk moved both of those companies to Texas in recent years and has loudly criticized both California and Delaware (where a Tesla shareholder sued him over his record-setting compensation).

— Maria Aspan, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026
In 2014, Cuban criticized the NFL for expanding its schedule to have games on more days of the week.

— Jon Machota, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of criticized

Verb

Granger chastised Abernethy in a series of emails, then took her concerns to Oberhelman, questioning his decision to assign her operations duties for the entire program in addition to her job coaching the divers.

— Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 23 July 2026
Trump famously chastised Zelenskyy in a 2025 Oval Office meeting and has pressured the Ukrainian president to give up land to satisfy Putin’s territorial desire for all of the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.

— Gerard Toal, The Conversation, 9 July 2026

Definition of chastised

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punishable

punished

punisher

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“Punished.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punished. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of punished

verb

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