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punish

verb [T] (CRIME)
 
 
/ˈpʌn.ɪʃ/

Definition

B1 to cause someone who has done something wrong or committed a crime to suffer, by hurting them, forcing them to pay money, sending them to prison, etc.: Those responsible for these crimes must be brought to court and punished. He punished the class by giving them extra work. The oil company was found guilty on ten counts of pollution, and was punished with a $250 million fine. → See also punitivePunishing and punishmentsPunishing by causing painHitting and beating to punish anyone who commits a particular crime: Drunken driving can be punished with a prison sentence.Punishing and punishmentsPunishing by causing painHitting and beating
(Definition of punish verb (CRIME) from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

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