chastise
chastise Lexical Profile
chastise Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To rebuke, scold, or reprimand someone severely for a fault or wrongdoing.
"The committee publicly chastised the company for failing to meet environmental safety standards."
To punish physically, especially by beating, in order to correct behavior (now dated or formal).
"In nineteenth-century boarding schools, headmasters routinely chastised unruly pupils with a cane."
Word Nuance & Usage
While 'chastise' historically meant to inflict corporal punishment, in contemporary usage it almost exclusively means to rebuke or scold severely; 'chasten', by contrast, emphasizes the humbling or restraining effect of a rebuke or ordeal.
• Rhymes for chastise
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
From Middle English 'chastisen', an extended form of Old French 'chastier' ('to instruct, admonish, or punish'), ultimately from Latin 'castigare' ('to make pure or correct'), derived from 'castus' ('pure, chaste').