How to Use penalty in a Sentence

penalty

noun
  • Lack of privacy is one of the penalties you pay for fame.
  • They allowed him to pay back the money without a penalty.
  • They allowed him to pay back the money without penalty.
  • The hockey player was given a penalty for holding.
  • The company was given a severe penalty for the violation.
  • But this penalty thing is on all of them.
    — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Plays with some edge and draws penalties.
    — Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 5 Mar. 2026
  • About 78 per cent of penalties are scored.
    — Stuart James, New York Times, 20 June 2026
  • Then he was forced to do a drive-thru penalty at the end of his first lap.
    — Michael Marot, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Aug. 2023
  • That charge carries a penalty of ten years to life.
    — Daniella Silva, NBC news, 10 Apr. 2026
  • The penalty appeared to be a bad call.
    — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
  • The higher that yield, the worse that penalty is.
    — Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 7 June 2026
  • The penalty killers can’t cheat towards one or two guys.
    — Matthew Fairburn, New York Times, 11 May 2026
  • What’s the penalty for snow and ice flying off your car?
    — Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 29 Jan. 2026
  • So right now, the team wouldn’t face any penalties for moving.
    — Rebecca Noel, Charlotte Observer, 6 June 2024
  • Messi rolled the penalty across the line.
    — Braidon Nourse, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026
  • The penalty for walking was push-ups.
    — Steve Galluzzo, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2026
  • On this night, penalties plagued the offense.
    — Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 7 Nov. 2025
  • The damages phase took place last year and the penalty phase, which kicked off this week.
    — Tracy Wright , Christina Dugan Ramirez, FOXNews.com, 22 Aug. 2025
  • His penalty then put Villa ahead in the tie.
    — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 25 May 2026
  • Along the way, Wilson earned a spot on the penalty kill.
    — Sean Gentille, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2026
  • The penalties have been brutal.
    — Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 25 Sep. 2025
  • The charge has a possible penalty of up to four years in prison.
    — Paula Wethington, CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026
  • The penalty for conspiring to evade the law was up to two years in prison.
    — Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Chou could face the death penalty if convicted of all charges.
    — Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2022
  • Each charge carries a penalty of 10 years in prison.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Each charge carries a penalty of up to 16 years.
    — Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 9 Apr. 2026
  • Moore drew a penalty and the Bulldogs won the game, but still.
    — Marc Weiszer, Athens Banner-Herald, 5 Sep. 2025
  • The charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
    — Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 23 Oct. 2025
  • There's no one who's going to give me a penalty there but myself.
    — CBS News, 3 May 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'penalty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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