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ret·ri·bu·tion

(rĕt′rə-byshən)

1. Punishment administered in return for a wrong committed.

2. Theology Punishment or reward distributed in a future life based on performance in this one.

[Middle English retribucion, repayment, reward, from Old French retribution, from Late Latin retribūtiō, retribūtiōn-, from Latin retribūtus, past participle of retribuere, to pay back : re-, re- + tribuere, to grant; see TRIBE.]

re·tribu·tive (rĭ-trĭbyə-tĭv), re·tribu·to·ry (-tôr′ē) adj.

re·tribu·tive·ly adv.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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