Synonyms of punitive
5 similar words · 2 opposite words
Another word for punitive is castigatory. Other synonyms of punitive are vindicatory, punitory, punishmental and vindictive. The opposite of punitive is nonpunitive.
Synonyms and similar words for punitive
adjectiveInflicting punishment; punishing.
- castigatoryServing or tending to castigate.
- vindicatoryPromoting or producing retribution or punishment.
- punitory archaicPunitive; serving to punish.
- punishmental rarePunitive.
- vindictive obsoletePunitive.
Opposite of punitive
adjectiveMore antonyms
- nonpunitiveNot punitive.
- unpunitiveNot punitive.
Meaning of punitive
- adjective Inflicting punishment; punishing.
punitive in other languages
Questions about synonyms of punitive
- What is another word for punitive?
- Punitive has 5 synonyms on Word.ws, such as castigatory, vindicatory, punitory, punishmental and vindictive.
- What is the opposite of punitive?
- The opposite of punitive is nonpunitive.
- What does punitive mean?
- Punitive means inflicting punishment; punishing.
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: punitive (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this page: “Synonyms of punitive.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/punitive. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.