punisher

American  

[puhn-i-sher] / ˈpʌn ɪ ʃər /

noun

1. a person who inflicts a penalty, such as pain, confinement, etc..

   If your response is delayed, the dog will link the punishment to the punisher and not to the transgression.

2. Sports. a person who plays or hits aggressively.

   The player is destined to be an all-American and an all-around punisher in the league.

3. a thing that inflicts pain, discomfort, etc..

   I ran out of time on the test because of one punisher—a question I should have left for last.

4. something that deters or dissuades.

   Any stimulus which makes the behavior it follows more frequent is a reinforcer, even if it is intended as a punisher.

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Other Word Forms

• self-punisher noun

Etymology

Origin of punisher

punish ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

“He needs a field jacket that fits just right, a ‘Punisher’-inspired challenge coin and a new fleet of foreign cars to drive around in,” Young told MS NOW.

From Salon

He has also handed out an oversize commemorative coin to colleagues resembling the logo of the Marvel “Punisher” character, who came to embody a general distrust of the U.S. justice system.

From The Wall Street Journal

In the last six weeks, Bernthal has promoted his action thriller “The Accountant 2” in three different cities, flown to and from Greece to film Christopher Nolan’s star-studded “The Odyssey,” worked in New York on Marvel’s standalone “Punisher” special that he’s writing and top-lining for Disney+ and returned to the Chicago set of “The Bear,” which last year earned him his first Emmy.

From Los Angeles Times

The Disney+ version of “Daredevil” retained a few characters from the original, including Deborah Ann Woll’s Karen Page, who did double duty on “The Punisher” as the figure tasked with keeping the vigilantes in her life centered and human.

From Salon

Another poke comes in Jon Bernthal’s return as The Punisher, which demonstrates keen business sense on the part of Mouse House executives since both the character and actor are extremely popular on the left and the right.

From Salon