as in nemesis
one who inflicts punishment in return for an injury or offense
a father who regrets the fact that he always ends up being the household's disciplinarian and resident punisher
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 punisher
Montgomery has barely been in the big leagues for two months but has already put his name alongside a couple of franchise icons (and another hard-core punisher of baseballs).
—
Phil Rogers, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Phil Rogers, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punisher
Noun
-
Through Chapter Progression, players can recruit Blazkowicz alongside his nemesis, scientist Strasse, both available with zero perks.—
Andrew McGowan,
Variety,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Even Pep Guardiola, once Mourinho’s cultural nemesis, employed stymying tactics as his Manchester City side ended their game at Arsenal earlier this month with just 33 per cent of possession.—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Kirk had been building his reputation as an imperious, right-wing avenger on college campuses, debating anyone willing to step up to the microphone to challenge him.—
Michael Luo,
New Yorker,
28 Sep. 2025
-
Mangione's image has been merged into memes with Nintendo's Luigi, portraying him as a vigilante avenger of systemic injustice.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The Dark Hearts, for whatever reason, weren’t a fan of this vigilante justice.—
Grace Byron,
Vulture,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Directed by the iconic Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another stars DiCaprio as Bob Ferguson, a vigilante and former rebel who is on the run from Penn's Officer Steven Lockjaw.—
Rebecca Aizin,
PEOPLE,
26 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Punisher.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punisher. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share