Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a heavy hitter; cit. 1820 is fig. use.

1820		‘Peter Corcoran’ Fancy xxii: I regret that my last letter proved so severe a punisher to you.
1821		Egan Life in London (1869) 261: What a punisher, too!
1835		G. Kent Modern Flash Dict.
1848		Flash Dict. in Sinks of London Laid Open.
1890		Bulletin (Sydney) 5 July 18/1: Put him before any of the middle-weights whom he knows he can beat, and Dooley is a terrible punisher; but directly reputation stands in front of him he becomes a helpless child.
1895		Ocala Eve. Star (FL) 7 Aug. 1/2: He floored her again and proceded to pound her [...] She gathered a rock and went for her punisher.
1908		Hawaiian Star (Honolulu) 8 Dec. 6/2: Neither man snowed a punch [...] Lahey never was a punisher and Reilly was little better.
1917		Seattle Star (WA) 26 June 8/1: Kilbane [...] a merciless punisher when his title has been threatened.
1921		Wash. Times (DC) 20 May 17/3: He must be something of a punisher himself to have dealt out the terrific lacings he has handed to a number of bulky men.

2. a demanding, laborious task.

1827

Sporting Mag. XXI 138: I had nearly fifty miles’ road-work this day, which [...] is a punisher.

3. a heavy user.

1893		Birmingham Dly Post 21 Dec. 8/5: Mr Stranders is not a piano punisher.
1922		Eve. Public Ledger (Phila., PA) 20 July 26/3: [photo caption of boy eating lollipop] Look at the lolly-pop punisher.
1951		(ref. to 1880s) S. Longstreet Pedlocks (1971) 89: Louis, who had gotten a reputation as a beer drinker in Philadelphia and an ale punisher at Cambridge.

4. a long-winded bore.

1953

Baker Aus. Speaks 104: Punisher, a person who talks boringly and at length.