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Synonym Chooser

How is the word castigate distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of castigate are chasten, chastise, correct, discipline, and punish. While all these words mean "to inflict a penalty on in requital for wrongdoing," castigate usually implies a severe, typically public censure.

an editorial castigating the entire city council

When is chasten a more appropriate choice than castigate?

The words chasten and castigate are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, chasten suggests any affliction or trial that leaves one humbled or subdued.

chastened by a landslide election defeat

When is it sensible to use chastise instead of castigate?

While in some cases nearly identical to castigate, chastise may apply to either the infliction of corporal punishment or to verbal censure or denunciation.

chastised his son for neglecting his studies

In what contexts can correct take the place of castigate?

The meanings of correct and castigate largely overlap; however, correct implies punishing aimed at reforming an offender.

the function of prison is to correct the wrongdoer

Where would discipline be a reasonable alternative to castigate?

Although the words discipline and castigate have much in common, discipline implies a punishing or chastening in order to bring under control.

parents must discipline their children

When might punish be a better fit than castigate?

The synonyms punish and castigate are sometimes interchangeable, but punish implies subjecting to a penalty for wrongdoing.

punished for stealing

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of castigate So maybe rather than castigating them, other teams would do well to emulate them. Dan Freedman, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024 Finally, the administration, in response to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks in Israel, which began the war in Gaza, has been castigated both for being too supportive of Israel and not supportive enough. Matthew Lee, Chicago Tribune, 18 Jan. 2025 The city issued evacuation orders minutes after 12 p.m. In the days since the blazes ignited, Bass has been castigated for her early absence by her former mayoral opponent Rick Caruso and others. Julia Wick, Los Angeles Times, 15 Jan. 2025 Between the lines: Trump empowers himself and his entourage by castigating traditional media, which is more fractured and less trusted than ever. Axios, 9 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for castigate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for castigate
Verb
  • On Wednesday, the couple jokingly addressed the awkward interview in which Hilaria scolded Alec for interrupting her during a red carpet moment that has since gone viral.
    Christina Dugan Ramirez, Fox News, 20 Mar. 2025
  • Omari Hardwick scolded an interviewer who misquoted him in a seeming attempt to stir up drama between the actor and Power producer 50 Cent.
    Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 20 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • This was a departure from Mourinho and Conte, who both moaned about investment, attacked the club culture, exited unceremoniously, and bad-mouthed them afterward.
    Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes, 23 Mar. 2025
  • By the way, it was attacked from the Pentagon and from the White House as being fake news that this was going to happen and Elon Musk denounced the leak.
    ABC News, ABC News, 23 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Counties with Republican executives were punished by receiving no vaccination site for months.
    Ryan Silverstein, New York Daily News, 16 Mar. 2025
  • European leaders view the EU as an alliance focused on preventing wars after World War II, not punishing the United States, as Trump suggests.
    Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 14 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • The controversy is intensifying, with U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts having now publicly reprimanded the president after a social media post in which Trump called for the impeachment of Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C. — the ...
    Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 19 Mar. 2025
  • At the time, the House of Representatives, with the Democrats holding the majority, voted to reprimand Wilson, who later issued an apology to Obama.
    Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 5 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • In a 1907 essay, the writer Ito Sakon criticized the idea of escaping the hot urban summer, instead presenting the heat as an opportunity for self-improvement.
    Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 23 Mar. 2025
  • But McGregor faces an uphill task to get his name on the ballot as few Irish lawmakers share his vehement anti-immigrant views, and many publicly criticized him after the civil case last November.
    Jessie Yeung, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Vance, who lectures U.S. allies about how to run their affairs, reminds us of every rich guy from suburban Pittsburgh who visits the Amalfi Coast in the summer, drives up the pedestrianized streets, and then complains that the pasta is too chewy and there’s no AC in his 15th-century villa.
    Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2025
  • Obama himself had to lecture black men testily about the need to turn out for Harris, suggesting their reluctance was due to sexism, but Biden’s numbers with this demographic were worse.
    W. James Antle III, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 14 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • In social media posts, Kennedy has largely blamed obesity on seed oils—a claim that nutrition experts dispute.
    Perri Ormont Blumberg, TIME, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Losing at home to Tennessee, even with a backup quarterback, and at home to Arizona cannot be blamed entirely on the front office.
    Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 19 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • But as the aircraft was climbing back into the air, the left wing of the twin-jet slammed into the runway.
    Elizabeth Keogh, New York Daily News, 18 Mar. 2025
  • But art is never apolitical, and in eastern Congo, slam often intertwines with activism.
    Patricia Huon, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Castigate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/castigate. Accessed 27 Mar. 2025.

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