Word
revenge
Phoneticsre·venge, stress on the second syllable
US/ɹiˈvɛndʒ/
UK/ɹɪvˈɛndʒ/
Definitions
01retaliation for a wrong
B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun
n. the act of hurting or punishing someone because they harmed you or someone you care about.
n. the action of inflicting hurt or harm on someone for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands.
日本語:復讐※
“He spent years planning his revenge against the man who stole his business.”
“The protagonist's quest for revenge eventually consumes him, illustrating the destructive nature of holding onto past grievances.”
Pitfall
He took a revenge on his enemy.
He took revenge on his enemy.
In this sense, 'revenge' is usually uncountable and does not take the article 'a'.
Synonyms
Antonyms
02winning back
B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun Sports Informal
n. a victory in a game or competition against someone who defeated you in the past.
n. an opportunity for a defeated player or team to redeem themselves by winning a subsequent encounter.
日本語:雪辱※
“After losing the first match, the team got their revenge by winning the final.”
“The defending champions are seeking revenge in tonight's final after their humiliating defeat earlier in the season.”
03to avenge a wrong
C1 · Advanced Literary
v. to punish someone for a bad thing they did to you or your family.
v. to inflict harm in return for an injury or insult; often used reflexively or with a direct object representing the wrong.
日本語:復讐する※
“She vowed to revenge her father's death no matter how long it took.”
“The prince sought to revenge himself upon those who had conspired to usurp his throne and exile his family.”
Usage
Often used reflexively, as in 'to revenge oneself on someone'.
Antonyms
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “revenge” in context.
Verb
01. exact revenge on a rival
“The count spent years plotting how to exact revenge on his rival for the betrayal.”
verb + noun + prep + adj + noun
02. seek revenge for the insult
“He refused to seek revenge for the insult, choosing instead to maintain his dignity.”
verb + noun + prep + noun
03. take revenge
“She finally took revenge by outperforming her former boss in the next quarterly sales.”
verb + noun
Adjective
04. bloody revenge
“The film depicts a cycle of bloody revenge that spans several generations of the two families.”
adj + noun
05. sweet revenge
“Winning the championship against the team that cut him was sweet revenge for the veteran player.”
adj + noun
Noun
06. act of revenge
“The sabotage was clearly an act of revenge by a disgruntled former employee.”
noun + of + noun
07. desire for revenge
“His overwhelming desire for revenge eventually consumed his personal life and career.”
noun + prep + noun
Preposition
08. in revenge for the attack
“The rebels launched a counter-offensive in revenge for the attack on their village.”
prep + noun + prep + noun
Real-World Examples
“Iran, meanwhile, has promised revenge for the killings of Khamenei and his family.” “On his league debut, away to Hibs, he was sent off in the first half after a revenge attack on the wrong mullet.” Etymology
From Middle French revenge, a derivation from revenger, from Old French revengier (possibly influenced by Old Occitan revènge (“revenge, comeback”), from Old Occitan revenir (“to come back”)), a variant of Middle French revancher (whence deverbal French revanche), from Old French revenchier. The variants Old French vengier (whence French venger) and Old French venchier are both descended from Latin vindicō, with stress-conditioned different parallel development in the inflectional forms. Doublet of revanche. Compare avenge and vengeance.
From Middle English revengen, from Old French revengier, revenger.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
- Frequency
- Common
- Level
- C1 · AdvancedOxford
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/revenge
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「日本語」 data: JMdict (EDRDG), CC BY-SA 4.0