Retribution

How to spell retribution

11 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce retribution

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does retribution mean?

1. nounPunishment or harm inflicted on someone as deserved repayment for a wrong they have done.

Retribution in a sentence

• The victims wanted justice, not personal retribution.

• He feared retribution from the colleagues he had reported for fraud.

Where does retribution come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb retribuere, which meant 'to pay back' or 'to repay', formed from re- 'back' and tribuere 'to assign, allot, or pay'. The same tribuere also gives us 'tribute', 'contribute', and 'distribute', all sharing the underlying idea of handing something out or paying it over. The Late Latin noun retributio originally carried a neutral sense of recompense, covering reward just as much as punishment. English took the word in the late 1300s, by way of Old French, and for a time it could mean a deserved reward; over the following centuries the meaning narrowed and darkened until it settled on deserved punishment or vengeance. The spelling stays close to its Latin parent, with the t-r-i-b chunk preserved intact, which is a useful anchor: think of the 'tribute' hidden in the middle to keep the letters in order.

How the word is built

• re- (back)
• tribut (from Latin tribuere: to assign, allot, pay)
• -ion (noun suffix)