spoil

spoil
—spoilable, adj. —spoilless, adj.
/spoyl/, v., spoiled or spoilt, spoiling, n.
v.t.
1. to damage severely or harm (something), esp. with reference to its excellence, value, usefulness, etc.: The water stain spoiled the painting. Drought spoiled the corn crop.
2. to diminish or impair the quality of; affect detrimentally: Bad weather spoiled their vacation.
3. to impair, damage, or harm the character or nature of (someone) by unwise treatment, excessive indulgence, etc.: to spoil a child by pampering him.
4. Archaic. to strip (persons, places, etc.) of goods, valuables, etc.; plunder; pillage; despoil.
5. Archaic. to take or seize by force.
v.i.
6. to become bad, or unfit for use, as food or other perishable substances; become tainted or putrid: Milk spoils if not refrigerated.
7. to plunder, pillage, or rob.
8. be spoiling for, Informal. to be very eager for; be desirous of: It was obvious that he was spoiling for a fight.
n.
9. Often, spoils. booty, loot, or plunder taken in war or robbery.
10. the act of plundering.
11. an object of plundering.
12. Usually, spoils.
a. the emoluments and advantages of public office viewed as won by a victorious political party: the spoils of office.
b. prizes won or treasures accumulated: a child's spoils brought home from a party.
13. waste material, as that which is cast up in mining, excavating, quarrying, etc.
14. an imperfectly made object, damaged during the manufacturing process.
[1300-50; (v.) ME spoilen < OF espoillier < L spoliare to despoil, equiv. to spoli(um) booty + -are inf. suffix; (n.) deriv. of the v. or < OF espoille, deriv. of espoillier]
Syn. 1. disfigure, destroy, demolish, mar. SPOIL, RUIN, WRECK agree in meaning to reduce the value, quality, usefulness, etc., of anything. SPOIL is the general term: to spoil a delicate fabric. RUIN implies doing completely destructive or irreparable injury: to ruin one's health. WRECK implies a violent breaking up or demolition: to wreck oneself with drink; to wreck a building.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Spoil — (spoil), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Spoiled} (spoild) or {Spoilt} (spoilt); p. pr. & vb. n. {Spoiling}.] [F. spolier, OF. espoillier, fr. L. spoliare, fr. spolium spoil. Cf. {Despoil}, {Spoliation}.] 1. To plunder; to strip by violence; to pillage; to… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • spoil — n Spoil, plunder, booty, prize, loot, swag can mean something of value that is taken from another by force or craft. Spoil applies to the movable property of a defeated enemy, which by the custom of old time warfare belongs to the victor and of… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • 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. [1913 Webster] Gentle gales, Fanning their odoriferous wings, dispense Native perfumes, and… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • spoil — [ spɔıl ] verb ** ▸ 1 make worse ▸ 2 allow child everything ▸ 3 treat someone with care ▸ 4 food: become too old ▸ 5 in election ▸ + PHRASES 1. ) transitive to affect something in a way that makes it worse, less attractive, or less enjoyable:… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Spoil — (spoil), v. i. 1. To practice plunder or robbery. [1913 Webster] Outlaws, which, lurking in woods, used to break forth to rob and spoil. Spenser. [1913 Webster] 2. To lose the valuable qualities; to be corrupted; to decay; as, fruit will soon… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • spoil — c.1300, from O.Fr. espoillier to strip, plunder, from L. spoliare to strip of clothing, rob, from spolium armor stripped from an enemy, booty; originally skin stripped from a killed animal, from PIE *spol yo , perhaps from root *spel to split, to …   Etymology dictionary

  • spoil — [v1] ruin, hurt blemish, damage, debase, deface, defile, demolish, depredate, desecrate, desolate, despoil, destroy, devastate, disfigure, disgrace, harm, impair, injure, make useless, mar, mess up*, muck up*, pillage, plunder, prejudice, ravage …   New thesaurus

  • spoil — [spoil] vt. spoiled or Brit. spoilt, spoiling [ME spoilen < MFr espoillier < L spoliare, to plunder < spolium, arms taken from a defeated foe, plunder, orig., hide stripped from an animal < IE base * (s)p(h)el , to split, tear off… …   English World dictionary

  • spoil|er — «SPOY luhr», noun. 1. a person or thing that spoils. 2. a person who takes spoils. 3. a movable flap on the upper surface of the wing of an airplane, to help in slowing down or in decreasing lift, as in descending or landing. 4. an airflow… …   Useful english dictionary

  • spoil — I (impair) verb addle, blemish, blight, botch, break, bungle, butcher, corrumpere, corrupt, damage, damage irreparably, debase, decay, decompose, deface, defile, deform, demolish, destroy, deteriorate, dilapidate, disable, disfigure, go bad, harm …   Law dictionary

  • spoil — ► VERB (past and past part. spoilt (chiefly Brit. ) or spoiled) 1) diminish or destroy the value or quality of. 2) (of food) become unfit for eating. 3) harm the character of (a child) by being too indulgent. 4) treat with great or excessive… …   English terms dictionary

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