Synonyms of punishments

punishments

noun

plural of punishment

as in penalties

suffering, loss, or hardship imposed in response to a crime or offense

he is serving five years in prison as punishment for aggravated assault

Synonyms & Similar Words

• penalties
• wraths
• sentences
• chastisements
• corrections
• disciplines
• castigations
• deserts
• retributions
• condemnations
• fines
• comeuppances
• reprimands
• reprisals
• nemeses
• retaliations
• revenges
• vengeances
• assessments
• criticisms
• examples
• imprisonments
• charges
• mulcts
• incarcerations
• censures
• confinements
• denouncements
• reproofs
• rebukes
• damnations

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• pardons
• indemnities
• exemptions
• amnesties
• paroles
• immunities
• vindications
• acquittals
• exonerations
• releases
• commutations
• exculpations
• reprieves
• remissions
• impunities
• absolutions
• disregards
• remitments
• condonations

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of punishments

Clear rules can preserve those responsibilities while guarding against the use of research funds as political rewards or punishments. — Carole Labonne, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026

The North Lawndale Employment Network (NLEN), a workforce development organization, commissioned the report and has worked with returning citizens for years to reverse the punishments that follow them after prison. — Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 7 Nov. 2026

Two were expelled from the university after an internal civil rights proceeding, and others faced less severe punishments from the school. — Shayna Jacobs, NBC news, 6 Nov. 2026

The regime’s habitual recourse to maximalist punishments and mass purges will likely drive more elites to defect and maybe, more strikingly, muster unprecedented expressions of collective action. — Jieun Baek, Foreign Affairs, 30 Oct. 2026

Panahi’s regular legal punishments from Iranian authorities have long run parallel to his position as one of the country’s most prominent representatives in global cinema. — J. Kim Murphy, IndieWire, 27 Oct. 2026

Some of those students say the university found their attackers responsible for the assault – only to let them off the hook with light punishments. — Casey Tolan, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026

Two were asked to write reflection essays as part of their punishments. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026

England’s punishments became a measure of what republican justice must overcome. — Maurizio Valsania, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026