penalize

especially British, pe·nal·ise

[peen-l-ahyz, pen-]

verb (used with object)

penalized, penalizing 

1. to subject to a penalty, as a person.

2. to declare (an action, deed, etc.) punishable by law or rule.

3. to put under a disadvantage or handicap.

penalize

/ ˈpiːnəˌlaɪz /

verb

1. to impose a penalty on (someone), as for breaking a law or rule

2. to inflict a handicap or disadvantage on

3. sport to award a free stroke, point, or penalty against (a player or team)

4. to declare (an act) legally punishable; make subject to a penalty

Other Word Forms

• penalizable adjective
• penalization noun
• nonpenalized adjective
• overpenalization noun
• overpenalize verb (used with object)
• repenalize verb (used with object)
• unpenalized adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of penalize¹

First recorded in 1865–70; penal + -ize

Example Sentences

The Dodgers were penalized by having to play these two games against the Reds.

From Los Angeles Times

When self-driving cars violate the rules of the road, law enforcement can’t penalize them the same way that they can humans.

From Los Angeles Times

But those were nothing next to the most wrongheaded move in recent Emmys history: the penalizing charity counter.

From Salon

Fred Sutton, with the California Apartment Assn., said he was concerned that, by requiring every room to be at a certain temperature, landlords could be penalized if just one room got too hot.

From Los Angeles Times

Many of those companies are now being penalized by the same president who pushed them during his first term to diversify their supply chains away from China and into other countries.

From Salon

Related Words

• castigate 
• chastise 
• discipline 
• fine