punish
Verb
Verb Forms: punished, punishing, punishes
- To impose a penalty for a wrongdoing.
- impose a penalty on; inflict punishment on
- "we had to punish the dog for soiling the floor again"
- To cause (a child, student, or someone else being looked after, or a suspect or criminal) to suffer for crime or misconduct, to administer disciplinary action, typically by an authority or a person in authority (for example: a parent, teacher, or police officer).
- To treat harshly and unfairly.
- To handle or beat severely; to maul.
- To consume a large quantity of.
Examples
- He hoped his clever block would punish his opponent’s attempt to use the double letter score.
- If a prince violates the law, then he must be punished like an ordinary person.
Origin / Etymology
From Middle English punischen, from Anglo-Norman, Old French puniss-, stem of some of the conjugated forms of punir, from Latin puniō (“I inflict punishment upon”), from poena (“punishment, penalty”); see pain. Displaced Old English wītnian and (mostly, in this sense) wrecan.
Scrabble Score: 11
punish: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordpunish: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
punish: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary
Words With Friends Score: 13
punish: valid Words With Friends Word