Meanings
- pluralplural onlyThat 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.
1667, John Milton, “Book IV”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC2 more examples
When the Japanese armies captured Pingrang on 15th September, they discovered that 35 good field guns were left behind, together with hundreds of magazine rifles and hundreds more of breechloaders. The amount of ammunition captured was also enormous.⁴⁷ If the spoils were already so substantial, the quantity of effective weapons the Chinese possessed in Pingrang was certainly impressive.
1996 October, Allen Fung, “Testing the Self-Strengthening: The Chinese Army in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895”, in Modern Asian Studies, volume 30, number 4, →ISSN, →JSTOR, →OCLC, page 1017; republished as Kenneth Swope, editor, Warfare in China Since 1600, 2017, →ISBN, →OCLC, page https://books.google.com/books?id=vgkkDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT210Mr Big threw a bundle each to his two trusty henchmen, Fingers and Thumbs. “There’s your share,” said the boss. The two men looked happy enough with their spoils.
2017, David Walliams [pseudonym; David Edward Williams], Bad Dad, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, →ISBNSynonyms: booty
- pluralplural onlyWaste material left over in the course of excavation, construction, mining, or dredging operations.
dredging spoils
- pluralplural onlyPublic offices and their benefits regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction, to be bestowed for its own advantage.
To the victor belong the spoils.
- indicativepresentsingularthird personthird-person singular simple present indicative of spoil
Milk spoils when left out too long.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThat which is taken from another by violence; especially, the plunder taken from an enemy; pillage, booty.
Translations
Ancient Greek σκῦλα, λάφυρα
- σκῦλα (skûla)that which is taken from another by violence
- λάφυρα (láphura)that which is taken from another by violence
Dutch plundering, roofbuit
- plunderingthat which is taken from another by violence
- roofbuitthat which is taken from another by violence
- vriendjespolitiekpublic offices and their benefits regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction
French pillage, sac
- pillagethat which is taken from another by violence
- sacthat which is taken from another by violence
- favoritismepublic offices and their benefits regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction
German Beute
- Beutethat which is taken from another by violence
Latin praeda, exuviae
- praedathat which is taken from another by violence
- exuviaethat which is taken from another by violence
Māori parakete, muremurenga
- paraketethat which is taken from another by violence
- muremurengathat which is taken from another by violence
Polish łup, przystawka
- łupthat which is taken from another by violence
- przystawkapublic offices and their benefits regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction
Russian добы́ча
- добы́ча (dobýča)that which is taken from another by violence
Spanish despojo, despojamiento
- despojothat which is taken from another by violence
- despojamientothat which is taken from another by violence
- expoliothat which is taken from another by violence
- espoliothat which is taken from another by violence
Cite this entry
spoils. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spoils
“spoils.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spoils. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “spoils,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spoils.
Source: spoils on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.