Link Centre Dictionary

penalty

pe·nalty

UK/ˈpɛn.əl.ti/ US/ˈpɛnʌlti/ common

noun

2.

a payment required for not fulfilling a contract

3.

the disadvantage or painful consequences of an action or condition

  • “neglected his health and paid the penalty”
Antonyms
4.

(games) a handicap or disadvantage that is imposed on a competitor (or a team) for an infraction of the rules of the game

Origin

From Middle French pénalité, from pénal, from Latin poenālis, from poena, borrowing of Ancient Greek ποινή (poinḗ), from Proto-Hellenic *kʷoinā́, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷoynéh₂, comprising *kʷey- + *-néh₂.

Phrases

  • death penalty
  • drive-through penalty
  • face mask penalty
  • fixed penalty notice
  • long lap penalty
  • loyalty penalty
  • marriage penalty
  • match penalty

Related words

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.