give someone what for

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#1·3h ago

(idiomatic, slang) To punish; to rebuke.

She gave him what for all right. But you could see she was ever so pleased and she went around telling everybody about it.

Origin: From 19th century, as a threatening rebuke to an impertinent (by 19th century standards) question of "what for?".Parent: "Go to your room."Child: "What for?"Parent (angrily): "Disobey me, and I'll '''give you 'what for''''!". Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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