avenge
[ uh-venj ]
/ əˈvɛndʒ /
verb (used with object), a·venged, a·veng·ing.
to take vengeance or exact satisfaction for: to avenge a grave insult.
to take vengeance on behalf of: He avenged his brother.
Origin of avenge
synonym study for avenge
Avenge,
revenge both imply to inflict pain or harm in return for pain or harm inflicted on oneself or those persons or causes to which one feels loyalty. The two words were formerly interchangeable, but have been differentiated until they now convey widely diverse ideas.
Avenge is now restricted to inflicting punishment as an act of retributive justice or as a vindication of propriety:
to avenge a murder by bringing the criminal to trial.
Revenge implies inflicting pain or harm to retaliate for real or fancied wrongs; a reflexive pronoun is often used with this verb:
Iago wished to revenge himself upon Othello.
OTHER WORDS FROM avenge
Words nearby avenge
Example sentences from the Web for avenge
British Dictionary definitions for avenge
avenge
/ (əˈvɛndʒ) /
verb
(usually tr)
to inflict a punishment in retaliation for (harm, injury, etc) done to (a person or persons); take revenge for or on behalf of
to avenge a crime; to avenge a murdered friend
Derived forms of avenge
avenger, nounWord Origin for avenge
C14: from Old French
avengier, from
vengier, from Latin
vindicāre; see
vengeance,
vindicate
usage for avenge
The use of
avenge with a reflexive pronoun was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable:
she avenged herself on the man who killed her daughter