punitive
punitive
Definition
pu·ni·tive (pyo̵̅o̅′nə tiv)
adjective
inflicting, concerned with, or directed toward punishment
Etymology: ML punitivus < L punitus, pp. of punire, to punish
pu′·ni·tively adverb
pu′·ni·tive·ness noun
punitive
Synonyms
punitive
Usage Examples
Preposition: in
- nature: It is important to maintain a licensing regime, which is not punitive in nature for smaller community events.
Modifies a noun
- damage: Business take stock for punitive damages of your business.
- sanction: At the very least he thought they were advisory with no punitive sanction for breaching them.
- expedition: A wholesale case was the fate of a punitive expedition sent down from Austria in the seventies.
- taxation: Another reason is their belief in punitive taxation on high earners.
- taxis: Such grants could be funded by a range of increasingly punitive taxes on large road bulk freight vehicles.
- measure: Are you looking already into punitive measures like sanctions?
Modifying Another Word
- increasingly: Such grants could be funded by a range of increasingly punitive taxes on large road bulk freight vehicles.
- not: Reform should be supportive, not punitive says Mental Health Foundation January 2006.
- highly: This is a highly punitive charge for individuals who have already implemented arrangements.
- potentially: But would the response here have been anything like as rapid, decisive and potentially punitive?
- financially: It is still financially punitive for women and low income groups.
- purely: However, methods designed to produce behavioral change based on some form of positive reinforcement work better overall than purely punitive strategies.
Used with adjective complement
Browse dictionary entries near punitive
- punishment
- punished
- punishable
- punish
- puniness
- Punic Wars
- Punic
- pungent
- pung
- Pune
