punishment

[ puhn-ish-muhnt ]
See synonyms for punishment on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the act of punishing.

  2. the fact of being punished, as for an offense or fault.

  1. a penalty inflicted for an offense, fault, etc.

  2. severe handling or treatment.

Origin of punishment

1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English punysshement, from Anglo-French punisement, Old French punissement; equivalent to punish + -ment

Other words from punishment

  • non·pun·ish·ment, noun
  • o·ver·pun·ish·ment, noun
  • pre·pun·ish·ment, noun
  • pro·pun·ish·ment, adjective
  • re·pun·ish·ment, noun
  • self-pun·ish·ment, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for punishment

punishment

/ (ˈpʌnɪʃmənt) /


noun
  1. a penalty or sanction given for any crime or offence

  2. the act of punishing or state of being punished

  1. informal rough treatment

  2. psychol any aversive stimulus administered to an organism as part of training

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with punishment

punishment

see glutton for punishment.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.