as in revenge
the act or an instance of responding to an injury with an injury
police believe that the murder was in retaliation for an earlier gangland execution
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Recent Examples of retaliation
Some in Seoul’s government worry that stronger ties to Trump could invite Chinese retaliation or alienate progressive voters.
—
Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Fay survives only for the mob’s retaliation to take his girlfriend and destroy his chance at a new life.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2025
In retaliation, Israel unleashed punishing strikes across Gaza that killed more than 100 people, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
—Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 29 Oct. 2025
Many have been denied visas or had their Overseas Citizen of India cards revoked as political retaliation.
—Mohammed Jawad, Mercury News, 28 Oct. 2025
The report released on Monday said attorneys did not investigate any claims of retaliation that were made by Youngquist against other board members and vice versa.
—Jessica Seaman, Denver Post, 27 Oct. 2025
High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars.
—Bill Barrow, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
From there on out, Kang and Kodos were set on a mission to do bad things to the Simpsons and their hometown, seemingly in retaliation for Lisa's accusations.
—Grace Dean, Space.com, 25 Oct. 2025
Due to fear of retaliation, these individuals were left anonymous on this affidavit.
—Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 24 Oct. 2025
Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Fay survives only for the mob’s retaliation to take his girlfriend and destroy his chance at a new life.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2025
In retaliation, Israel unleashed punishing strikes across Gaza that killed more than 100 people, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
—Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 29 Oct. 2025
Many have been denied visas or had their Overseas Citizen of India cards revoked as political retaliation.
—Mohammed Jawad, Mercury News, 28 Oct. 2025
The report released on Monday said attorneys did not investigate any claims of retaliation that were made by Youngquist against other board members and vice versa.
—Jessica Seaman, Denver Post, 27 Oct. 2025
High tariffs inevitably lead to retaliation by foreign countries and the triggering of fierce trade wars.
—Bill Barrow, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2025
From there on out, Kang and Kodos were set on a mission to do bad things to the Simpsons and their hometown, seemingly in retaliation for Lisa's accusations.
—Grace Dean, Space.com, 25 Oct. 2025
Due to fear of retaliation, these individuals were left anonymous on this affidavit.
—Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 24 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retaliation
Noun
-
Emanuel Sharp, JoJo Tugler and Milos Uzan are all back for total revenge.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Elf revenge for putting us through holiday hell.—
Kimberlee Speakman,
PEOPLE,
1 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The seductive pull of righteous retribution gives way to a full-on god complex, setting the stage for an extraordinary cautionary tale in the form of a cat-and-mouse procedural.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
-
All spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were either not authorized to discuss the effort or feared retribution for disclosing it.—
Joshua Goodman,
Fortune,
28 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Retaliation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retaliation. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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