as in correctional
inflicting, involving, or serving as punishment
any misbehavior was immediately met with a punitive response the company had to pay a million dollars in punitive damages
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Recent Examples of punitive
Some states, including Michigan, impose purely punitive sanctions such as fines or jail time.
—
Caitlin Cavanagh, The Conversation, 15 Oct. 2025
But to do so now would be punitive and feel good to many Dolfans, that’s all.
—Miami Herald, 13 Oct. 2025
To the extent permitted by applicable law, all judgments or awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket damages (excluding attorneys’ fees) associated with participation in this Promotion and shall not include any indirect, punitive, incidental and/or consequential damages.
—Vogue, 13 Oct. 2025
But opponents, mostly representing wealthier communities, said the bill contained punitive requirements from the state.
—Andrea Riquier, USA Today, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for punitive
Caitlin Cavanagh, The Conversation, 15 Oct. 2025
But to do so now would be punitive and feel good to many Dolfans, that’s all.
—Miami Herald, 13 Oct. 2025
To the extent permitted by applicable law, all judgments or awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket damages (excluding attorneys’ fees) associated with participation in this Promotion and shall not include any indirect, punitive, incidental and/or consequential damages.
—Vogue, 13 Oct. 2025
But opponents, mostly representing wealthier communities, said the bill contained punitive requirements from the state.
—Andrea Riquier, USA Today, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for punitive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punitive
Adjective
-
The protest coincided with a Board of Supervisors hearing where the Sheriff’s Office gave an update on the first six months of the program, which purchased 75 stun guns for deputies and correctional officers.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
22 Oct. 2025
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The declarations that accompany the petition — 16 in all, including one from a correctional healthcare expert and one from the sister of a man who died in an isolation cell — support the filing’s arguments.—
Jeff McDonald,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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In many cases, those who have been arrested are, in essence, disappeared into the federal penal system.—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
21 Oct. 2025
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Hollfelder had been charged with abuse of residents of penal facilities, a felony that can carry a sentence of up to 1½ years in prison and two years on extended supevision.—
Kelli Arseneau,
jsonline.com,
17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
In 2006, the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a corrective action order, requiring the company to address integrity issues along the entirety of its 3,900-mile Pacific Coast pipelines after a rise in pipeline incidents.—
Sarah Henry,
AZCentral.com,
25 Oct. 2025
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To Kean, these attempts to resurrect the past are a refreshing corrective to traditional archeology.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Punitive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punitive. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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