Phrase guide

death penalty

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A punishment in which the offender is put to death by the state.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: capital punishment, execution, Texas justice

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

putting a condemned person to death

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: execution, executing, capital punishment

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: corporal punishment

Narrower terms: burning, burning at the stake, hanging, electrocution, decapitation, beheading, crucifixion

History

Etymology

From death + penalty.

Across languages

Translations

96 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: dënim me vdekje — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Arabic: إِعْدَام (ʔiʕdām) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Arabic: عُقُوبَة الْإِعْدَام (ʕuqūbat al-ʔiʕdām) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Arabic: عُقُوبَة الْمَوْت (ʕuqūbat al-mawt) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Armenian: մահապատիժ (mahapatiž) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Azerbaijani: ölüm cəzası — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Azerbaijani: edam — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Belarusian: смяро́тнае пакара́нне (smjarótnaje pakaránnje) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Belarusian: смяро́тная ка́ра (smjarótnaja kára) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Bengali: মৃত্যুদণ্ড (mrittudonḍo) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Bulgarian: смъ́ртно наказа́ние (smǎ́rtno nakazánie) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Burmese: သေဒဏ် (sedan) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Catalan: pena de mort — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Chinese Mandarin: 死刑 (sǐxíng) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Chinese Mandarin: 極刑 /极刑 (jíxíng) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Chinese Mandarin: 死罪 (sǐzuì) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Czech: trest smrti — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Danish: dødsstraf — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Dutch: doodstraf — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Esperanto: mortpuno — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Finnish: kuolemanrangaistus — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • French: peine de mort — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • French: peine capitale — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • French: punition capitale — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Galician: pena de morte — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Georgian: სიკვდილით დასჯა (siḳvdilit dasǯa) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Georgian: სასჯელის უმაღლესი ზომა (sasǯelis umaɣlesi zoma) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • German: Todesstrafe — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Hebrew: עונש מוות — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Hindi: मृत्युदंड (mŕtyudaṇḍ) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Hindi: महादण्द (mahādaṇd) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Hindi: सज़ा-ए-मौत (sazā-e-maut) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Hungarian: halálbüntetés — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Icelandic: dauðarefsing — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Indonesian: hukuman mati — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Irish: pionós báis — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Italian: pena di morte — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Italian: pena capitale — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Japanese: 死刑 (shikei) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Japanese: 極刑 (kyokkei) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Japanese: 死罪 (shizai) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Kazakh: өлім жазасы (ölım jazasy) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Khmer: ទោសប្រហារជីវិត (tooh prɑɑhaa ciivɨt) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Korean: 사형 (sahyeong) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Northern Kurdish: cezayê mirinê — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Northern Kurdish: cezayê îdamê — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Kyrgyz: өлүм жазасы (ölüm jazası) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Lao: ປານະທັນ (pā na than) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Latin: mortis poena — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Latvian: nāvessods — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Lithuanian: mirties bausmė — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Macedonian: смртна казна (smrtna kazna) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Malay: hukuman mati — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Norwegian Bokmål: dødsstraff — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: dødsstraff — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Dari: اِعْدَام (i'dām) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Iranian Persian: اِعْدام (e'dâm) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Iranian Persian: مُجازاتِ اِعْدام (mojâzât-e e'dâm) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Polish: kara śmierci — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Polish: najwyższy wymiar kary — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Portuguese: pena de morte — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Romanian: pedeapsă cu moartea — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Russian: сме́ртная казнь (smértnaja kaznʹ) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Russian: вы́сшая ме́ра наказа́ния (výsšaja méra nakazánija) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Russian: вы́шка (výška) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Sanskrit: मृत्युदण्ड (mṛtyudaṇḍa) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Serbo-Croatian: смртна казна — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Serbo-Croatian: smrtna kazna — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Slovak: trest smrti — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Slovene: smrtna kazen — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Spanish: pena de muerte — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Spanish: pena mortal — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Spanish: pena capital — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Spanish: último suplicio — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Sranan Tongo: dedestrafu — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Swedish: dödsstraff — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Tagalog: parusang kamatayan — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Tajik: ҷазои қатл (jazo-yi qatl) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Tamil: மரணதண்டனை (maraṇataṇṭaṉai) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Tatar: үлем җәзасы (ülem cäzası) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Thai: โทษประหารชีวิต (tôot-bprà-hǎan-chii-wít) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Thai: ประหารชีวิต (bprà-hǎan-chii-wít) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Turkish: idam cezası — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Turkish: ölüm cezası — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Ottoman Turkish: سیاست (siyâset) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Turkmen: ölüm jezasy — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Ukrainian: сме́ртна ка́ра (smértna kára) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Ukrainian: ви́ща мі́ра покара́ння (výšča míra pokaránnja) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Urdu: سَزائے مَوت (sazāe maut) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Uyghur: ئۆلۈم جازاسى (ölüm jazasi) — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Uzbek: o‘lim jazosi — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Vietnamese: án tử hình — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Vietnamese: tử hình — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Volapük: deadapönod — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Welsh: cosb marwolaeth — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment
  • Welsh: cosb angau — state punishment of death — see also capital punishment