Despoil
Definition, Meaning & Examples
Pronunciation /dɪˈspɔɪl/ · Part of speech verb
Quick meaning: Despoil is a verb meaning (transitive) To plunder; to pillage; take spoil from.
Meaning
(transitive) To plunder; to pillage; take spoil from.
More Meanings
- (transitive) To violently strip (someone), with indirect object of their possessions etc.; to rob.
- (obsolete, transitive or reflexive) To strip (someone) of their clothes; to undress.
- (obsolete) Plunder; spoliation.
Example Sentences
a law which restored to them an immense domain of which they had been despoiled
They've come to witness the Beginning. The rebirth of Paradise, despoiled by mankind.
To intercept thy way, or send thee back / Despoiled of innocence, of faith, of bliss.
Ripton was familiar with the rod, a monster much despoiled of his terrors by intimacy.
Word Forms
- despoils
- despoiling
- despoiled
Synonyms for despoil
Depending on context, synonyms include foray, plunder, rape, reave, loot, strip.
Related Words
Related dictionary entries include plunder, pillage, reave, ransack, foray, rape.
Related Dictionary Tools
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.