to punish
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to punish
To impose a punishment on someone for an offense, a mistake, or a crime. This is often done by an authority such as a court or parents.
Der Richter wird den Angeklagten für den Diebstahl strafen.
The judge will punish the defendant for the theft.
to punish someone with something
To punish someone through deliberate disregard, ignoring them, or withdrawing affection. A common expression is 'jemanden mit Nichtachtung strafen' (to treat someone with contempt / to punish someone with disregard).
Nach dem Streit strafte sie ihn mit tagelangem Schweigen.
After the argument, she punished him with days of silence.
to be cursed with
To unfortunately have a negative trait or disadvantage, as if it were a higher decree.
Er ist wirklich mit einem schrecklichen Orientierungssinn gestraft.
He is truly cursed with a terrible sense of direction.
The verb 'strafen' (to punish) is directly related to the noun 'die Strafe' (punishment/penalty). When you 'strafen' someone, you give them a 'Strafe' (punishment).
Für dieses Vergehen droht eine hohe Strafe.
A severe penalty is threatened for this offense.
To state the reason for the punishment, you use the preposition 'für' (for) followed by the accusative. The structure is: jemand (subject) straft jemanden (accusative) für etwas (accusative).
Die Eltern straften das Kind für die schlechte Note mit Fernsehverbot.
The parents punished the child for the bad grade with a ban on watching TV.
When the type of punishment is an action, you use the preposition 'mit' (with) and the dative. A very common expression is 'jemanden mit Nichtachtung strafen' (to treat someone with contempt / to punish someone with disregard).
Er hat sie nach dem Streit mit Schweigen gestraft.
After the argument, he punished her with silence.
The expression 'mit etwas gestraft sein' (to be cursed with something) is formed with the auxiliary verb 'sein' (to be) and expresses that someone suffers from a long-lasting disadvantage. The person who is 'gestraft' (cursed/punished) is in the nominative.
Manche Menschen sind mit einer lauten Stimme gestraft.
Some people are cursed with a loud voice.
to punish
Bestrafen and strafen can both mean imposing a punishment on someone for misconduct. Bestrafen is the neutral standard choice, while strafen often sounds more elevated or literary and also occurs in fixed expressions. In everyday situations, bestrafen is therefore usually the more appropriate choice.
Das Gericht wird den Täter wegen seines Fehlverhaltens strafen.
The court will punish the offender for his misconduct.
Die Schule wird den Schüler wegen seines Fehlverhaltens bestrafen.
The school will punish the student for his misconduct.
