1. To subject to a penalty for an offense, sin, or fault.

2. To inflict a penalty for (an offense).

3. To handle roughly; hurt: My boots were punished by our long trek through the desert.

Synonyms: These verbs mean to subject a person to something negative for an offense, sin, or fault. Punish is the least specific: The principal punished the students who were caught cheating.
To correct is to punish so that the offender will mend his or her ways: Regulations formerly permitted prison wardens to correct unruly inmates.
Chastise implies either corporal punishment or a verbal rebuke, as a means of effecting improvement in behavior: I chastised the bully by giving him a thrashing. The sarcastic child was roundly chastised for insolence.
Discipline stresses punishment inflicted by an authority in order to control or to eliminate unacceptable conduct: The worker was disciplined for insubordination.
Castigate means to censure or criticize severely, often in public: The judge castigated the attorney for badgering the witness.
Penalize usually implies the forfeiture of money or of a privilege or gain because rules or regulations have been broken: Those who file their income-tax returns late will be penalized.