Worthy of or deserving to be castigated; capable of being criticized, reprimanded, or severely rebuked.
From Latin castigare (to correct, reprove) + -able (capable of); the root comes from castus (pure) and agere (to drive), literally 'to drive toward purity' through correction.
The Latin root suggests that punishment was seen as morally purifying rather than just punitive—a concept that haunted criminal justice systems for centuries and explains why we still talk about 'reforming' criminals rather than just removing them from society.
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