revenge

revenge

re·venge [revenge revenges revenged revenging] noun, verb   [rɪˈvendʒ]    [rɪˈvendʒ] 

noun uncountable
1. something that you do in order to make sb suffer because they have made you suffer
• He swore to take (his) revenge on his political enemies.
• She is seeking revenge for the murder of her husband.
• The bombing was in revenge for the assassination.
• an act of revenge

• revenge attacks/killings

2. (sport) the defeat of a person or team that defeated you in a previous game
• The team wanted to get revenge for their defeat earlier in the season.  
Word Origin:
late Middle English: from Old French revencher, from late Latin revindicare, from re- (expressing intensive force) + vindicare ‘claim, avenge’.  
Thesaurus:
revenge noun U
• He swore to take revenge on his enemies.
retaliation • |formal vengeance • |written reprisal •
revenge/retaliation/vengeance/reprisals for sth
in revenge/retaliation/vengeance/reprisal
take revenge/vengeance on sb
want/vow/swear/exact/wreak revenge/vengeance
Which word? Revenge is the most general of these words. It often refers to a personal act that is done in response to sth that has been done to you personally. Retaliation and reprisals are often taken by a group, such as a military force, against another group who may not be responsible for the first crime
• They fear reprisals against aid workers in the region.
Vengeance is extreme, violent and often personal.  
Example Bank:
• He vowed to take his revenge on the man who had killed his brother.
• Revenge is sweet, so they say.
• She desperately wanted to take revenge on her attacker.
• The accusations were driven by a desire for revenge.
• The attack was in revenge for the deaths of two loyalist prisoners.
• The bombing was an act of revenge for the shooting of two young boys.
• This was sweet revenge for our defeat earlier in the season.
• revenge for the insult
• taking revenge on her attacker
• He swore to take revenge on his political enemies.
• His death set off a series of revenge killings.
• The team wanted to get their revenge for their defeat earlier in the season.
• There were television appeals that acts of revenge should cease.

Derived: revenge yourself on somebody ▪ revenged on somebody 

verb
Verb forms:

 
Word Origin:
late Middle English: from Old French revencher, from late Latin revindicare, from re- (expressing intensive force) + vindicare ‘claim, avenge’.  
Grammar Point:
avenge / revenge
Avenge is a verb; revenge is (usually) a noun.
People avenge something or avenge themselves on somebody: ▪ She vowed to avenge her brother’s death. ◊ ▪ He later avenged himself on his wife’s killers. You take revenge on a person.

In more formal or literary English, revenge can also be a verb. People revenge themselves on somebody or are revenged on them (with the same meaning): ▪ He was later revenged on his wife’s killers. You cannot revenge something: She vowed to revenge her brother’s death.