slap on the wrist

1. A mild reproof, as in We were fined heavily, and all she got from the judge was a slap on the wrist. [Early 1900s]

Example Sentences

Wuterich's military lawyer, Haytham Faraj, a former marine himself, said the punishment was "tantamount to a slap on the wrist… like a speeding ticket".

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The judge gave Google a slap on the wrist and said the competitive dynamics of the marketplace were changing already, largely because of AI.

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Ms Mitchell described the decision as no more than a "slap on the wrist".

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“I can guarantee you if it was anybody else there wouldn’t be this little slap on the wrist. It’s a microcosm of what’s going on in Palestine ... punishments are few and far between,” Ramsey said.

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"He admitted to what he'd done, and it was like a slap on the wrist," she said.

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