How to Use punishment in a Sentence

punishment

noun
  • I took away my daughter's car keys as a punishment for her bad behavior.
  • The punishments that the government has inflicted on the protesters are severe and unjust.
  • Some religions teach that wicked people will suffer eternal punishment in hell after they die.
  • The punishment for murder is life imprisonment.
  • For me, work is not a punishment.
    — Ashley Lutz, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2025
  • This is not about guilt as punishment.
    — Rabbi Bruce D. Forman, Sun Sentinel, 3 Feb. 2026
  • The process is the punishment with them.
    — Ted Johnson, Deadline, 13 Feb. 2026
  • My wife says punishment doesn't work.
    — Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 27 Oct. 2025
  • Treat it like play, not punishment.
    — Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 23 Dec. 2025
  • There is no punishment that can restore the loss of life.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2026
  • That carries a punishment of up to five years in prison and a fine.
    — Hannah Fingerhut, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
  • How and when Stone would make good on his punishment was left up to him.
    — Bill Koch, USA TODAY, 22 Sep. 2022
  • It is not known how long the men will be held or the extent of their punishment.
    — Walter Pavlo, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
  • Puma, though, was hoping to serve his punishment at home and avoid a fine.
    — Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 22 Mar. 2023
  • Yes, so don’t make the punishment staying away from school for two weeks.
    — Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Feb. 2026
  • Does the punishment change if the person is nude?
    — Tiffani Jackson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 Feb. 2026
  • There has to be a real-time, in-game punishment.
    — Jon Root Outkick, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2026
  • But some punishments have seemed soft in his tenure.
    — Zach Harper, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2026
  • Up-downs are a tough punishment to swallow.
    — Haley Sawyer, Oc Register, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Some politicians said the punishments didn't go far enough.
    — ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
  • So, will Chelsea face a punishment?
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2026
  • There were punishments, too, leaving scars and black eyes.
    — Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 31 Jan. 2026
  • This is not supposed to be punishment.
    — Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 22 Oct. 2025
  • The offense is a felony and carries a punishment of up to life in prison.
    — Alex Brizee, Idaho Statesman, 13 June 2025
  • To me as an artist not able to create that in itself is punishment enough.
    — Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE.com, 14 Mar. 2022
  • In Las Cruces, the punishment for cart theft can be stiff.
    — N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 22 Feb. 2026
  • Pugs fesses up about Slurp and skips off for his punishment.
    — Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2025
  • And what were the punishments handed out?
    — Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2026
  • Even that punishment would be too lenient.
    — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 26 Apr. 2026
  • It should be explained this is not a punishment, but common sense.
    — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 20 Feb. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'punishment.' 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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