retaliation

American  

[ri-tal-ee-ey-shuhn] / rɪˌtæl iˈeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of retaliating; return of like for like; reprisal.

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Other Word Forms

• counterretaliation noun
• nonretaliation noun

Etymology

Origin of retaliation

First recorded in 1575–85; retaliate + -ion

Explanation

Retaliation is an act of revenge. Before you initiate retaliation on someone who has wronged you, consider whether he or she might have a ninja alter ego and a set of nunchucks stashed away. The noun retaliation stems from the Latin retaliare, meaning “pay back in kind.” Notice the word kind in that definition. Retaliation used to have both good and evil connotations. Now, though, it’s important to read that kind as synonymous with type or sort because retaliation has since lost its positive sense. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.”

Example Sentences

For those who don’t stay silent, retaliation from bosses can come in the form of “highway therapy,” she said — when firefighters are reassigned to a station far from home.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026

Riverside County has been ordered to pay $2.25 million to a former sergeant who said he was pressured into early retirement in retaliation for reporting workplace harassment by a superior.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026

Its strategy, which has a narrow margin for error, depends on sustaining pressure without provoking overwhelming retaliation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Iran had previously said it was ready for any eventuality and defiantly refused to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which it closed in retaliation for the attack launched on February 28.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

What strength had I to dart retaliation at my antagonist?

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Related Words

• punishment
• reprisal
• retribution
• revenge