as in avenging
to punish in kind the wrongdoer responsible for
retaliated his neighbor's malicious destruction of his flower garden by cutting down the man's prize apple tree
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Recent Examples of retaliating
Russia was also retaliating against the court, including by ordering Khan’s arrest.
—
David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2025
Yes, the administration is actually asserting that they must be allowed to keep imposing tariffs to stop other countries from retaliating against it for imposing tariffs.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025
The base became a liability when Iran targeted it in June, retaliating for an American strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.
—Abbas Al Lawati, CNN Money, 18 Sep. 2025
The agreement also includes an injunction preventing the union from enforcing the collective bargaining agreement between the union and the district on the basis of race and from retaliating against anyone who opposed any discriminatory practices or participated in any related investigation.
—Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
As part of this, the suit alleges that the company is illegally pushing venues into exclusive ticketing contracts, and retaliating against those who choose to work with another ticketing operator.
—Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2025
Sheriff Adam King, was indicted last week on two felony counts of retaliating against a witness and one misdemeanor count of abuse of office, the Star-Telegram previously reported.
—Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Sep. 2025
Unions have filed lawsuits, alleging Trump is retaliating against them for opposing parts of his agenda.
—Andrea Hsu, NPR, 1 Sep. 2025
Some Democratic states such as California are retaliating by redrawing their own maps.
—Holly Corbett, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2025
Yes, the administration is actually asserting that they must be allowed to keep imposing tariffs to stop other countries from retaliating against it for imposing tariffs.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025
The base became a liability when Iran targeted it in June, retaliating for an American strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.
—Abbas Al Lawati, CNN Money, 18 Sep. 2025
The agreement also includes an injunction preventing the union from enforcing the collective bargaining agreement between the union and the district on the basis of race and from retaliating against anyone who opposed any discriminatory practices or participated in any related investigation.
—Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
As part of this, the suit alleges that the company is illegally pushing venues into exclusive ticketing contracts, and retaliating against those who choose to work with another ticketing operator.
—Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2025
Sheriff Adam King, was indicted last week on two felony counts of retaliating against a witness and one misdemeanor count of abuse of office, the Star-Telegram previously reported.
—Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Sep. 2025
Unions have filed lawsuits, alleging Trump is retaliating against them for opposing parts of his agenda.
—Andrea Hsu, NPR, 1 Sep. 2025
Some Democratic states such as California are retaliating by redrawing their own maps.
—Holly Corbett, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retaliating
avenging
Verb
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The movie tells the story of a teenager avenging the deaths of his family at the hands of hordes of carnivorous demons and, against all the odds, it has been embraced by critics and audiences alike.—
Caroline Reid,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
The Eagles were avenging a heartbreaking loss.—
Zach Berman,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Retaliating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retaliating. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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