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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Recent Examples of punished
Defensive rotations lagged, second efforts were inconsistent and the Cavaliers repeatedly punished mismatches around the rim and along the perimeter.
—
C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 20 Feb. 2026
The captain was punished with a transfer to a town where car number plates started with the letters OK and where people from far-off districts came to get their vehicles registered.
—Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
But Schwartzman noted that if the FCC punished a network for ignoring the rule, the move would likely be challenged in court and take years to resolve.
—Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
On Wednesday, a senior White House adviser publicly lambasted the report, calling it shoddy work and even suggesting its authors should be punished.
—Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
Here's how schools punished students after thousands walked out to protest ICE.
—Evan Frank, IndyStar, 19 Feb. 2026
The stock has fallen dramatically since its IPO last summer, swept up in the same indiscriminate selling that has punished anything with a SaaS business model.
—Deirdre Bosa, CNBC, 17 Feb. 2026
But, after serving more than 30 years of a natural life sentence, Modrowski won back his freedom in summer 2024 when a judge ruled he had been too harshly punished and resentenced him to a 60-year term.
—Christy Gutowski, Chicago Tribune, 13 Feb. 2026
Erin Bailey, a defense attorney in South Carolina who represented Maddie and others, said women should not be punished for taking matters into their own hands.
—Shoshana Walter, CBS News, 10 Feb. 2026
C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 20 Feb. 2026
The captain was punished with a transfer to a town where car number plates started with the letters OK and where people from far-off districts came to get their vehicles registered.
—Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
But Schwartzman noted that if the FCC punished a network for ignoring the rule, the move would likely be challenged in court and take years to resolve.
—Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
On Wednesday, a senior White House adviser publicly lambasted the report, calling it shoddy work and even suggesting its authors should be punished.
—Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
Here's how schools punished students after thousands walked out to protest ICE.
—Evan Frank, IndyStar, 19 Feb. 2026
The stock has fallen dramatically since its IPO last summer, swept up in the same indiscriminate selling that has punished anything with a SaaS business model.
—Deirdre Bosa, CNBC, 17 Feb. 2026
But, after serving more than 30 years of a natural life sentence, Modrowski won back his freedom in summer 2024 when a judge ruled he had been too harshly punished and resentenced him to a 60-year term.
—Christy Gutowski, Chicago Tribune, 13 Feb. 2026
Erin Bailey, a defense attorney in South Carolina who represented Maddie and others, said women should not be punished for taking matters into their own hands.
—Shoshana Walter, CBS News, 10 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punished
Verb
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On the other hand, a slowdown was registered in Europe, penalized by the wholesale channel, and in China.—
Luisa Zargani,
Footwear News,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Kim was penalized and did not complete a lap in the race.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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This has been quite a three-year stretch for Garcia, suspended for a year and fined $1 million by the New York State Athletic Commission for allegedly using performance-enhancing drugs in a win over Devin Haney.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
The Jazz was also fined $500,000 for conduct detrimental to the league also related to the management of its roster.—
Mike Curtis,
Dallas Morning News,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Ronald Bryant, 56, pleaded no contest to assault and two counts of false imprisonment and was sentenced in late December to four years behind bars.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Dominique Pelicot was sentenced to 20 years in prison.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
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He was convicted eight years earlier of solicitation of prostitution involving a minor.—
Michael R. Sisak,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Feb. 2026
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If convicted, Mountbatten-Windsor, previously known as the Duke of York (until he was stripped of his title last year), could face a life sentence.—
K.J. Yossman,
Variety,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The treatment of many Minnesota residents by ICE and CBP agents, which resulted in, among other things, the very public killing of Good and Alex Pretti, both US citizens – has been roundly criticized.—
Jeanne Sahadi,
CNN Money,
24 Feb. 2026
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It might also be criticized for saying nothing about whether any or all of that money should be rebated to the countries that paid the money and the companies that experienced price increases for their products as a result of higher tariffs.—
Cal Thomas,
Arkansas Online,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In addition, few doctors with repeat medical malpractice payouts get disciplined by state medical boards, which are frequently run by doctors, one study found.—
Amber Gaudet
Updated February 20,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Feb. 2026
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However, students do not have a First Amendment right to participate in a walkout and could be disciplined for missing class or other handbook violations.—
Cate Charron,
IndyStar,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
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When her research contradicted the premise, she was chastised for failing to come up with enough evidence.—
Jonathan Blitzer,
New Yorker,
17 Feb. 2026
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Members of the City Council have chastised Palantir publicly for its work with ICE, and advocacy groups have tried to push the council to divest from any services or contracts with the company.—
Aldo Svaldi,
Denver Post,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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These are typically corrected or mitigated during the inspection, according to the Sacramento County Retail Food Inspection Guide.—
Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
February 20,
Sacbee.com,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Most violations were corrected during the inspection.—
Evan Moore,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Punished.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punished. Accessed 25 Feb. 2026.
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