retributive

adjective

Definition of retributivenext
as in retaliatory

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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 retributive The Front Page Highlights The president’s unilateral and retributive style of governing is starting to hit a wall in both chambers of Congress. — Katie Rogers Adriana Loureiro Fernandez Nina Agrawal Ryan Mac, New York Times, 5 June 2026 The images captured by bystanders and immigration agents were reminiscent of the lynching postcards that white spectators once bought and traded — reproductions of retributive violence, tailor-made to titillate and intimidate. — Tressie McMillan Cottom, Mercury News, 7 Feb. 2026 For millennia, punishment was considered morally defensible purely on retributive grounds. — Paul Rosenzweig, The Atlantic, 3 Jan. 2026 The Austro-Hungarian Empire’s retributive demands against Serbia led Russia, a Serbian ally, to mobilize its forces, which in turn provoked Germany to build up troops against Russia and England, another Russian ally. — Joel Wuthnow, Foreign Affairs, 12 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for retributive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for retributive
  1. retaliatory
  2. revengeful
  3. retributory
  4. punitive
  5. penal
  6. disciplinary
Adjective
  • Editor-in-chief Erik Slavin, publisher Max Lederer, and reporter Lara Korte at Stars and Stripes – a military news outlet that is partially funded by the Pentagon – claimed their dismissals were retaliatory and violated the First Amendment.
    — Miles J. Herszenhorn, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2026
  • The two sides traded strikes earlier this week for the first time in over a month, and the new attacks risk another retaliatory cycle.
    — Tim Lister, CNN Money, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of retaliatory
Adjective
  • DeMar DeRozan had 32, Russell Westbrook had a revengeful 22 and Malik Monk had 26 off the bench.
    — Zach Harper, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026
  • Brian Heil played Don Jose with angst and ultimately, revengeful rage as Carmen’s spurned lover.
    — Marcia Luttrell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2025
Definition of revengeful
Adjective
  • As Afghanistan's once-again rulers, the Taliban would refrain from retributory violence and respect women's rights - at least so far as Islam allows.
    — BostonGlobe.com, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Aug. 2021
Definition of retributory
Adjective
  • The Department of Defense attempted to blacklist Anthropic in February after the company refused to remove restrictions on its AI models being used for autonomous weapons and domestic surveillance, a move widely seen as punitive.
    — Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Defense attorneys described their confinement as effectively punitive segregation even though the brothers had not committed disciplinary violations.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of punitive
Adjective
  • The museum, spanning a former cell block wing, is a deeply informative and well curated journey through the evolution of the nation’s penal system.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Sep. 2026
  • While the two men entered the Russian penal system around the same time, their cases differ significantly.
    — Jared Kofsky, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of penal
Adjective
  • Yet Fernandez was spared disciplinary action from his club after offering to make an undisclosed sum to an anti-discrimination charity (it was never revealed which one).
    — Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Cloud was not ejected from the game, nor did the WNBA issue any disciplinary action.
    — Scott Thompson OutKick, FOXNews.com, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of disciplinary

Browse Nearby Words

retributions
retributive
retributory
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Cite this Entry

“Retributive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/retributive. Accessed 8 Sep. 2026.

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