Brutal
Punitive
Punitive adjective - Inflicting, involving, or serving as punishment.
Brutal and punitive are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Brutal" instead an adjective "Punitive".
Nearby Words: punish, punishment
Mutual synonyms
Both words in one sentence
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Nintendo Hard: Probably not as much as the original game, as Michel Ancel wanted to make sure the difficulty curve wasn't too brutal, and because you have infinite lives as well as frequent check points death isn't very punitive, but you will still die a lot.
Source: Video Game / Rayman Origins
Cite this Source
Punitive and Brutal. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 02, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/brutal/punitive
Brutal & Punitive. N.p., 2016. Web. 02 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/brutal/punitive>.
Punitive or Brutal. 2016. Accessed August 02, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/brutal/punitive.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "brutal" and "punitive" have occurred on timeline