cruel and unusual punishment

Cultural

Punishment prohibited by the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution. Cruel and unusual punishment includes torture, deliberately degrading punishment, or punishment that is too severe for the crime committed. This concept helps guarantee due process even to convicted criminals. Many people have argued that capital punishment (see also capital punishment) should be considered cruel and unusual punishment.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In recent years, the division has found prisons and jails guilty of violating incarcerated people’s rights against cruel and unusual punishment, their religious freedoms, and their rights under the Americans With Disabilities Act.

From Slate • Jul. 5, 2025

Johnson, asks whether fining homeless people for sleeping outside when there isn’t adequate shelter space for them amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.

From New York Times • Apr. 23, 2024

Still, in 2018, five people experiencing homelessness in Grants Pass sued the city on behalf of its homeless population, arguing the ban violated the US constitution's eighth amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2024

A lower court ruled that doing so was cruel and unusual punishment.

From Salon • Apr. 20, 2024

Disheartened, we decided to challenge Joe's death-in-prison sentence as unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023