chastise
/ˈt͡ʃæstaɪz/verb
chastise is spelled C-H-A-S-T-I-S-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 51,129th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, chastise means “To punish, especially by corporal punishment” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in chastise?
| Letters | 8: C-H-A-S-T-I-S-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 51,129th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is chastise?
Chastise appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 51,129th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce chastise?
- UK /tʃæˈstaɪz/
- US /ˈt͡ʃæstaɪz/
- US /t͡ʃæˈstaɪz/
Chastise has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-chastise.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of chastise
- chastises present, singular, he/she/it
- chastising participle, present
- chastised participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does chastise mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To punish, especially by corporal punishment.
- 2
To castigate; to scold or censure.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Chastise in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | châtier |
| German | züchtigen |
| Portuguese | castigar |
| Spanish | castigar, regañar, escarmentar , reprehender |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does chastise come from?
From Middle English chastisen, from Old French chastier, from Latin castīgō. See also the doublets chasten and castigate and cf. also chaste.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).