From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpunishpun‧ish /ˈpʌnɪʃ/ ●●○ verb [transitive] 1 PUNISHto make someone suffer because they have done something wrong or broken the law → punishment, punitive Smacking is not an acceptable way of punishing a child. He promised to punish severely any officials found guilty of electoral fraud.punish somebody for (doing) something It’s unfair to punish a whole class for the actions of one or two students. They deserve to be punished for putting passengers at risk. I felt I was being punished for what my mother had done.punish somebody by doing something My parents decided to punish me by withdrawing financial support.punish somebody with something The House voted to punish the senator with a formal reprimand.2 PUNISHif a crime is punished in a particular way, anyone who is guilty of it is made to suffer in that way → punishment, punitivebe punished by/with something In some societies, theft is punished by death.Grammar Punish is usually passive in this meaning.3 → punish yourselfTHESAURUSpunish to do something unpleasant to someone because they have done something wrong or broken the lawDrug smugglers are severely punished. She wanted to punish him for deceiving her.fine to make someone pay money as a punishmentThe company was fined for safety violations.sentence if a judge sentences a criminal, he or she gives them an official punishment, usually sending them to prison for a period of timeThe judge sentenced Margolis to a year in prison.penalize (also penalise British English) to officially punish someone, especially by taking away their right to do something or by limiting their freedom in some wayNew laws will penalize firms that continue to pollute the environment.discipline to punish someone who has broken the rules of an organization that they belong to or work forOfficers are expected to discipline soldiers who do not keep their uniforms in good condition.come down hard on somebody informal to punish someone or criticize them severelyThe judge came down hard on Harris, saying that his crime was ‘inexcusable’.make an example of somebody to punish someone so that other people are afraid to do the same thingAthletics officials felt they had to make an example of him for using banned drugs.teach somebody a lesson informal to do something in order to show someone that they must not do something again, when they have behaved very badlyI didn't want to hurt him - I just wanted teach him a lesson.Maybe a night in jail will teach him a lesson.make somebody pay (for something) informal to make someone wish they had never done something, by making them sufferWe should make him pay for all the mischief he's caused! → See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
punish• They were the men the politicians called when they wanted somebody transferred, promoted, punished.• She still refused to give up her son and instead was punished.• The judge said he'd already been punished a thousand times.• Deserting the army during war can be punished by death.• The Court ruled that such speech could be punished even if it was not legally obscene and did not cause substantial disruption.• Two instructors were punished for harassing female students.• She was suspended while the school decided how to punish her.• His parents punished him for disobedience.• She was always reluctant to punish him.• He knew that if he didn't punish Oliver, his wife would never forgive him.• The U.S. threatened to take away trading privileges as a way to punish the country for human rights violations.• Sanders should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.punish somebody for (doing) something• In the third, the Padres punished Brown for a felony -- he walked Hitchcock -- to score twice more.• A teacher can not be punished merely for being a member of such an organization.• We don't punish people for crimes if they are insane, because we have decided that they can't help it.• Institutionally, there are no mechanisms for punishing some one for deviant behaviour of any kind.• I tried punishing him for it, but that only made it worse.• She wondered if fate had just punished her for picking wild flowers.• Janson says she's being punished for publicly criticizing the department.• She wanted no part of some one trying to punish her husband for something she obviously regarded as between him and her.• And Sinatra punished him for the rest of his life.be punished by/with something• Any business that operates within the investment arena that is not authorised can be punished by imprisonment or fines.• Conversely, they were punished with a lower standard of living and consequent lower status if they chose to have large ones.• Everyone had to wait their turn or be punished by filling in a long complicated questionnaire two hundred and sixteen times.• The child is punished by not being allowed to play in the next school baseball game.• The victims could be blamed and punished with impunity.• This violated the immigration ban and was punished with one to three months in prison.• When he eventually came down, he was punished with two months in solitary confinement.• Whom was she really punishing by behaving this way?Origin punish (1300-1400) Old French punir, from Latin punire, from poena; → PAIN1 