vengeance — the act of punishing or harming someone in return for what they have done to you
Part of speech: NOUN
Definition: the act of punishing or harming someone in return for what they have done to you
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈvendʒəns/
Example Sentences
- The superhero movie was full of vengeance, but the villain kept forgetting why he was angry.
- She plotted her vengeance carefully, planning to replace all his coffee with decaf.
- The novel tells a story of vengeance that spans three generations.
vengeance
NOUN[/ˈvendʒəns/]
the act of punishing or harming someone in return for what they have done to you

The angry employee prepared his vengeance by aggressively filling the decoy sandwich with a ridiculous amount of hot sauce.

VENGE(revenge) + ANCE(action) — vengeance is simply the noun form of taking revenge.

Ignoring the teacher's heavy sentence and showing zero penance, the naughty student immediately plotted his messy vengeance.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
Vengeance derives from Latin vindicare, meaning 'to claim' or 'to avenge.' The word gained strong semantic weight in ancient Roman culture, where personal retaliation was justified as a means of defending honor and vindicating one's reputation.
Breakdown
Latin vindicare (to claim, avenge) → Old French vengance → Middle English vengeance. The suffix -ance transforms the verb into an abstract noun denoting the act or practice of avenging.
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“The superhero movie was full of vengeance, but the villain kept forgetting why he was angry.”
“She plotted her vengeance carefully, planning to replace all his coffee with decaf.”
“The novel tells a story of vengeance that spans three generations.”
“His desire for vengeance consumed him completely.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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