Reprisal
/rɪˈpraɪzəl/noun
An act of retaliation or revenge, especially in response to an injury or attack.
Did you know?In early modern usage, a reprisal was often a sanctioned act of seizure or retaliation, so the word carried the cold authority of law as well as the heat of vengeance.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
praehendere
“to seize, grasp, take hold of”
Late Latin
Late Latin
reprehendere
“to seize back, check, restrain, rebuke”
Old French
Old French
reprise
“a taking back; recovery; seizure in return”
Middle English
English
reprysal
“retaliatory seizure or recovery of goods by force”
Modern English
English
reprisal
“retaliation or revenge, especially as a measured response to an injury or attack”
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