To subject (a person or group) to a penalty or sanction for wrongdoing, fault, or misbehavior. The teacher decided to punish the student for cheating on the exam.
To cause severe stress, damage, or hardship to something through intense force, use, or conditions. Relentless waves punished the coastline during the storm.
Informal: To consume, use, or defeat with great vigor or intensity. After the game, she punished a whole pizza by herself.