retaliatory
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of retaliatory
Explanation
A retaliatory act is one that attempts to get even with someone or to punish them for some wrongdoing. When you shove your brother because he shoved you, that's retaliatory. Sometimes, wars are avoided because one country or group hesitates to attack another out of fear of a retaliatory strike. In fact, most wars consist of a long series of retaliatory actions — a bomb dropped to pay the enemy back for the bomb they dropped, and so on. Retaliatory comes from the verb retaliate, and the Latin root retaliare, "pay back in kind."
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.
The main damage to these types of companies is likely to come from continued Canadian retaliatory measures that already have hurt sales, according to Cassidy.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026
Harley has previously eaten retaliatory tariffs to keep retail prices stable, a practice that has cost it more than $170 million over the last eight years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Still, the latest retaliatory purge was as pathetic as it was predictable.
From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2026
Filippi previously filed a claim against Metrolink operator Southern California Regional Rail Authority over allegations of retaliatory conduct.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
President Kennedy had warned that any Soviet attack would be met with “a full retaliatory response.”
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
