punish
verb (used with object)
to subject to pain, loss, confinement, death, etc., as a penalty for some offense, transgression, or fault.
is punishing
-
present progressiveof punish (3rd person singular).present progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or state that is currently taking place in the immediate present.
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.
But what’s intended as a blow to the government is punishing the Cuban people.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
A lawsuit says the agency is punishing the outfit for its viewpoint.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
“The administration is punishing Mr. Abrego Garcia for his willingness to speak out about the abuses that he suffered at CECOT,” she told me.
From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2025
“MSU is punishing me for Ms. Tracy’s leak, which violated MSU’s rules regarding confidentiality of the investigation,” Tucker wrote.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 19, 2023
To this day, when ranchers have drawn floods of limpid water from the bowels of the earth, the place 153 sees long periods whose heat is punishing.
From When the West Was Young by Frederick R. (Frederick Ritchie) Bechdolt
