pillory

/ˈpɪləri/

Other forms: pilloried; pillories; pillorying

A pillory is a wooden frame with cutouts for someone's head and hands. Long ago, people found guilty of a crime could be sentenced to be locked in a pillory for a certain amount of time for punishment but also for public humiliation.

The verb pillory means to be punished by being locked in a pillory, but references to this form of punishment are historic and it is no longer used — you might see references today to someone in a pillory in a cartoon. As a modern verb, pillory means both to criticize harshly and to expose to public ridicule. Someone who is caught doing something immoral may be pilloried and people who believe they have been unfairly criticized say they have been pilloried, but often only after they've been exposed!

Definitions of pillory

1. noun

   a wooden instrument of punishment on a post with holes for the wrists and neck; offenders were locked in and so exposed to public scorn
   type of:

   instrument of punishment

   an instrument designed and used to punish a condemned person
2. verb

   expose to ridicule or public scorn
   synonyms: gibbet

   type of:

   display, exhibit, expose, showcase

   show; make visible or apparent
3. verb

   punish by putting in a pillory
   type of:

   penalise, penalize, punish, sanction

   impose a penalty on; inflict punishment on
4. verb

   criticize harshly or violently
   synonyms: blast, crucify, savage

   type of:

   criticise, criticize, knock, pick apart

   find fault with; express criticism of; point out real or perceived flaws