Adjacent Words

Spoil definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SPOIL, v.t. [L., to pull asunder, to tear, to strip, to peel.]
1. To plunder; to strip by violence; to rob; with of; as, to spoil one of his goods or possessions.
My sons their old unhappy sire despise, Spoild of his kingdom, and deprivd of eyes.
2. To seize by violence; to take by force; as, to spoil ones goods.
This mount with all his verdure spoild--
3. To corrupt; to cause to decay and perish. Heat and moisture will soon spoil vegetable and animal substances.
4. To corrupt; to vitiate; to mar.
Spiritual pride spoils many graces.
5. To ruin; to destroy. Our crops are sometimes spoiled by insects.
6. To render useless by injury; as, to spoil paper by wetting it.
7. To injure fatally; as, to spoil the eyes by reading.
SPOIL, v.i.
1. To practice plunder or robbery.
--Outlaws which, lurking in woods, used to break forth to rob and spoil.
2. To decay; to lose the valuable qualities; to be corrupted; as, fruit will soon spoil in warm weather. Grain will spoil, if gathered when wet or moist.
SPOIL, n. [L.]
1. That which is taken from others by violence; particularly in war, the plunder taken from an enemy; pillage; booty.
2. That which is gained by strength or effort.
Each science and each art his spoil.
3. That which is taken from another without license.
Gentle gales fanning their odoriferous wings, dispense native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole their balmy spoils.
4. The act or practice of plundering; robbery; waste.
The man that hath not music in himself, nor is not movd with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treason, stratagems and spoils.
5. Corruption; cause of corruption.
Villainous company hath been the spoil of me.
6. The slough or cast skin of a serpent or other animal.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: (usually plural) valuables taken by violence (especially in war); "to the victor belong the spoils of the enemy"
2: the act of spoiling something by causing damage to it; "her spoiling my dress was deliberate" [syn: spoil, spoiling, spoilage]
3: the act of stripping and taking by force [syn: spoil, spoliation, spoilation, despoilation, despoilment, despoliation] v
1: make a mess of, destroy or ruin; "I botched the dinner and we had to eat out"; "the pianist screwed up the difficult passage in the second movement" [syn: botch, bodge, bumble, fumble, botch up, muff, blow, flub, screw up, ball up, spoil, muck up, bungle, fluff, bollix, bollix up, bollocks, bollocks up, bobble, mishandle, louse up, foul up, mess up, fuck up]
2: become unfit for consumption or use; "the meat must be eaten before it spoils" [syn: spoil, go bad]
3: alter from the original [syn: corrupt, spoil]
4: treat with excessive indulgence; "grandparents often pamper the children"; "Let's not mollycoddle our students!" [syn: pamper, featherbed, cosset, cocker, baby, coddle, mollycoddle, spoil, indulge]
5: hinder or prevent (the efforts, plans, or desires) of; "What ultimately frustrated every challenger was Ruth's amazing September surge"; "foil your opponent" [syn: thwart, queer, spoil, scotch, foil, cross, frustrate, baffle, bilk]
6: have a strong desire or urge to do something; "She is itching to start the project"; "He is spoiling for a fight" [syn: itch, spoil]
7: destroy and strip of its possession; "The soldiers raped the beautiful country" [syn: rape, spoil, despoil, violate, plunder]
8: make imperfect; "nothing marred her beauty" [syn: mar, impair, spoil, deflower, vitiate]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English spoile, from Anglo-French espuille, from espuiller Date: 14th century 1. a. plunder taken from an enemy in war or from a victim in robbery ; loot b. public offices made the property of a successful party — usually used in plural c. something valuable or desirable gained through special effort or opportunism or in return for a favor — usually used in plural 2. a. spoliation, plundering b. the act of damaging ; harm, impairment 3. an object of plundering ; prey 4. earth and rock excavated or dredged 5. an object damaged or flawed in the making Synonyms: spoil, plunder, booty, prize, loot mean something taken from another by force or craft. spoil more commonly spoils applies to what belongs by right or custom to the victor in war or political contest <the spoils of political victory>. plunder applies to what is taken not only in war but in robbery, banditry, grafting, or swindling <a bootlegger's plunder>. booty implies plunder to be shared among confederates <thieves dividing up their booty>. prize applies to spoils captured on the high seas or territorial waters of the enemy <the wartime right of seizing prizes at sea>. loot applies especially to what is taken from victims of a catastrophe <picked through the ruins for loot>. II. verb (spoiled; also spoilt; spoiling) Etymology: Middle English, from espuiller, espoiller, from Latin spoliare to strip of natural covering, despoil, from spolium skin, hide — more at spill Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. archaic despoil, strip b. pillage, rob 2. archaic to seize by force 3. a. to damage seriously ; ruin b. to impair the quality or effect of <a quarrel spoiled the celebration> 4. a. to impair the disposition or character of by overindulgence or excessive praise b. to pamper excessively ; coddle intransitive verb 1. to practice plunder and robbery 2. to lose valuable or useful qualities usually as a result of decay <the fruit spoiled> 3. to have an eager desire <spoiling for a fight> Synonyms: see decay, indulge • spoilable adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v. (past and past part. spoilt or spoiled) 1 tr. a damage; diminish the value of (was spoilt by the rain; will spoil all the fun). b reduce a person's enjoyment etc. of (the news spoiled his dinner). 2 tr. injure the character of (esp. a child, pet, etc.) by excessive indulgence. 3 intr. a (of food) go bad, decay; become unfit for eating. b (usu. in neg.) (of a joke, secret, etc.) become stale through long keeping. 4 tr. render (a ballot paper) invalid by improper marking. 5 tr. (foll. by of) archaic or literary plunder or deprive (a person of a thing) by force or stealth (spoiled him of all his possessions). --n. 1 (usu. in pl.) a plunder taken from an enemy in war, or seized by force. b esp. joc. profit or advantages gained by succeeding to public office, high position, etc. 2 earth etc. thrown up in excavating, dredging, etc. Phrases and idioms: be spoiling for aggressively seek (a fight etc.). spoils system US the practice of giving public office to the adherents of a successful party. spoilt for choice having so many choices that it is difficult to choose. Etymology: ME f. OF espoillier, espoille f. L spoliare f. spolium spoil, plunder, or f. DESPOIL

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spoil Spoil, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spoiledor Spoilt; p. pr. & vb. n. Spoiling.] [F. spolier, OF. espoilelier, fr. L. spoliare, fr. spolium spoil. Cf. Despoil, Spoliation.] 1. To plunder; to strip by violence; to pillage; to rob; -- with of before the name of the thing taken; as, to spoil one of his goods or possession. ``Ye shall spoil the Egyptians.'' --Ex. iii. 22. My sons their old, unhappy sire despise, Spoiled of his kingdom, and deprived of eues. --Pope. 2. To seize by violence;; to take by force; to plunder. No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man. --Mark iii. 27. 3. To cause to decay and perish; to corrput; to vitiate; to mar. Spiritual pride spoils many graces. --Jer. Taylor. 4. To render useless by injury; to injure fatally; to ruin; to destroy; as, to spoil paper; to have the crops spoiled by insects; to spoil the eyes by reading.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spoil Spoil, v. i. 1. To practice plunder or robbery. Outlaws, which, lurking in woods, used to break forth to rob and spoil. --Spenser. 2. To lose the valuable qualities; to be corrupted; to decay; as, fruit will soon spoil in warm weather.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Spoil Spoil, n. [Cf. OF. espoille, L. spolium.] 1. That which is taken from another by violence; especially, the plunder taken from an enemy; pillage; booty. Gentle gales, Fanning their odoriferous wings, dispense Native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole Those balmy spoils. --Milton. 2. Public offices and their emoluments regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction, to be bestowed for its own advantage; -- commonly in the plural; as to the victor belong the spoils. From a principle of gratitude I adhered to the coalition; my vote was counted in the day of battle, but I was overlooked in the division of the spoil. --Gibbon. 3. That which is gained by strength or effort. each science and each art his spoil. --Bentley. 4. The act or practice of plundering; robbery; aste. The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treason, stratagems, and spoil. --Shak. 5. Corruption; cause of corruption. [Archaic] Villainous company hath been the spoil of me. --Shak. 6. The slough, or cast skin, of a serpent or other animal. [Obs.] --Bacon. Spoil bank, a bank formed by the earth taken from an excavation, as of a canal. The spoils system, the theory or practice of regarding public and their emoluments as so much plunder to be distributed among their active partisans by those who are chosen to responsible offices of administration.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(spoils, spoiling, spoiled, spoilt) Note: American English uses the form 'spoiled' as the past tense and past participle. British English uses either 'spoiled' or 'spoilt'. 1. If you spoil something, you prevent it from being successful or satisfactory. It's important not to let mistakes spoil your life... Peaceful summer evenings can be spoilt by mosquitoes. VERB: V n, V n 2. If you spoil children, you give them everything they want or ask for. This is considered to have a bad effect on a child's character. Grandparents are often tempted to spoil their grandchildren whenever they come to visit. VERB: V n • spoilt, spoiled A spoilt child is rarely popular with other children... Oh, that child. He's so spoiled. ADJ 3. If you spoil yourself or spoil another person, you give yourself or them something nice as a treat or do something special for them. Spoil yourself with a new perfume this summer... Perhaps I could employ someone to iron his shirts, but I wanted to spoil him. He was my man. = pamper VERB: V pron-refl, V n 4. If food spoils or if it is spoilt, it is no longer fit to be eaten. We all know that fats spoil by becoming rancid... Some organisms are responsible for spoiling food and cause food poisoning... VERB: V, V n 5. If someone spoils their vote, they write something illegal on their voting paper, usually as a protest about the election, and their vote is not accepted. (BRIT) They had broadcast calls for voters to spoil their ballot papers... = deface VERB: V n 6. The spoils of something are things that people get as a result of winning a battle or of doing something successfully. True to military tradition, the victors are now treating themselves to the spoils of war... N-PLURAL: usu with supp 7. If you say that someone is spoilt for choice or spoiled for choice, you mean that they have a great many things of the same type to choose from. At lunchtime, MPs are spoilt for choice in 26 restaurants and bars. PHRASE: v-link PHR

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

spoil.

See BOOTY; WAR, 8.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Plunder, rob, despoil, fleece, strip, ravage, waste. 2. Injure, harm, disfigure, mar, damage, ruin, destroy. 3. Steal, take, seize by violence. 4. Corrupt, vitiate, mar, ruin. II. v. n. 1. Steal, pilfer, rob. 2. Decay, be corrupted. III. n. 1. Booty, pillage, plunder, prey. 2. Prize, booty, gain. 3. Robbery, waste, pillage, rapine, spoliation. 4. Slough, cast skin, tegument. 5. Corruption, ruin, destruction.

Moby Thesaurus

accommodate, acquisition, baby, baffle, balk, be after, be all thumbs, be desirous of, be spoiling for, blackmail, blast, blemish, blight, blot, blunder, blunder away, blunder into, blunder on, blunder upon, boggle, boodle, booty, botch, brave, break down, break up, bumble, bungle, butcher, canker, cater to, challenge, checkmate, circumvent, cocker, coddle, commit a gaffe, confound, confront, contravene, corrupt, cosset, counter, counteract, countermand, counterwork, crave, cross, crumble, crumble into dust, curdle, damage, dash, decay, decompose, deface, defeat, defile, deflorate, defy, demolish, depredate, desecrate, desolate, despoil, destroy, devastate, discomfit, disconcert, discountenance, disfigure, dish, disintegrate, disrupt, dote on, dysphemize, elude, fall into decay, fall to pieces, faux pas, favor, fester, fleece, flounder, flummox, foil, forage, foray, force, freeboot, frustrate, fumble, gangrene, give way to, go bad, go off, go to pieces, goods, grab, graft, gratify, gut, harm, haul, hot goods, humor, hurt, impair, indulge, injure, itch for, kill, knock the chocks, look a fright, look a mess, look bad, look for, look like hell, look something terrible, loot, lumber, mar, maraud, mess up, mildew, miscue, mold, molder, mollycoddle, mortify, moulder, much, muddle, muff, murder, necrose, nonplus, oblige, offend, offend the eye, outrage, pamper, perks, perplex, perquisite, pickings, pillage, play havoc with, please, plunder, pork barrel, prejudice, prey on, prize, public till, public trough, putrefy, putresce, queer, raid, rankle, ransack, ravage, raven, ravish, reive, rifle, rot, ruin, sabotage, sack, satisfy, scar, scotch, slip, snafu, sphacelate, spike, spoils, spoils of office, spoliate, spoliation, squeeze, stealings, stolen goods, stonewall, stumble, stump, suppurate, swag, sweep, taint, take, tarnish, thwart, till, trip, turn, uglify, upset, violate, vitiate, waste, wreck, yearn for, yield to