spoil

1 of 2

verb

spoiled ˈspȯi(-ə)ld How to pronounce spoil (audio) ˈspȯi(-ə)lt How to pronounce spoil (audio) or chiefly British spoilt ˈspȯi(-ə)lt How to pronounce spoil (audio) ; spoiling

transitive verb

1
a
: to damage seriously : ruin
b
: to impair the quality or effect of
a quarrel spoiled the celebration
2
a
: to impair the disposition or character of by overindulgence or excessive praise
b
: to pamper excessively : coddle
3
a
b
archaic : despoil, strip
4
archaic : to seize by force

intransitive verb

1
: to lose valuable or useful qualities usually as a result of decay
the fruit spoiled
2
: to have an eager desire
spoiling for a fight
3
: to practice plunder and robbery
spoilable adjective

spoil

2 of 2

noun

1
a
: plunder taken from an enemy in war or from a victim in robbery : loot
b
: something valuable or desirable gained through special effort or opportunism or in return for a favor
usually used in plural
c
: public offices made the property of a successful party
usually used in plural
2
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
Choose the Right Synonym for spoil

Verb

decay, decompose, rot, putrefy, spoil mean to undergo destructive dissolution.

decay implies a slow change from a state of soundness or perfection.

a decaying mansion

decompose stresses a breaking down by chemical change and when applied to organic matter a corruption.

the strong odor of decomposing vegetation

rot is a close synonym of decompose and often connotes foulness.

fruit was left to rot in warehouses

putrefy implies the rotting of animal matter and offensiveness to sight and smell.

corpses putrefying on the battlefield

spoil applies chiefly to the decomposition of foods.

keep the ham from spoiling

indulge, pamper, humor, spoil, baby, mollycoddle mean to show undue favor to a person's desires and feelings.

indulge implies excessive compliance and weakness in gratifying another's or one's own desires.

indulged myself with food at the slightest excuse

pamper implies inordinate gratification of desire for luxury and comfort with consequent enervating effect.

pampered by the amenities of modern living

humor stresses a yielding to a person's moods or whims.

humored him by letting him tell the story

spoil stresses the injurious effects on character by indulging or pampering.

foolish parents spoil their children

baby suggests excessive care, attention, or solicitude.

babying students by grading too easily

mollycoddle suggests an excessive degree of care and attention to another's health or welfare.

refused to mollycoddle her malingering son

Noun

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

Examples of spoil in a Sentence

Verb The fight spoiled the party. The camping trip was spoiled by bad weather. Don't let one mistake spoil your day. Don't spoil your appetite by snacking too much. Exposure to air will spoil the wine. I spoiled the sauce by adding too much garlic. The milk was beginning to spoil. The hotel spoils their guests with fine dining and excellent service. She always spoils me on my birthday. You should spoil yourself with a day at the spa. Noun the bandits escaped with their lives but not with the spoils
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
Dodge won't spoil the surprise by confirming if the last one will be based on the Charger or the Challenger (or maybe both), but the evidence suggests the latter is more likely. Jack Fitzgerald, Car and Driver, 13 Feb. 2023 Farmers’ broiler chickens suffocate, and dairy products spoil. Monica Mark, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Feb. 2023
Noun
Meek learned that people don’t care how the sausage is made, and there are no spoils for being right when your opponent has better jokes. Nate Jones, Vulture, 20 Aug. 2024 That was the lesson of the conferences at Versailles, Yalta, and Potsdam after the two world wars: to the negotiator go the spoils. Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 7 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for spoil 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French espuiller, espoiller, from Latin spoliare to strip of natural covering, despoil, from spolium skin, hide — more at spill entry 1

Noun

Middle English spoile, from Anglo-French espuille, from espuiller

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3b

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of spoil was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near spoil

Cite this Entry

“Spoil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spoil. Accessed 4 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

spoil

1 of 2 noun
: stolen goods : plunder

spoil

2 of 2 verb
spoiled ˈspȯi(ə)ld How to pronounce spoil (audio)
ˈspȯi(ə)lt
also spoilt ˈspȯi(ə)lt How to pronounce spoil (audio) ; spoiling
1
2
a
: to damage badly : ruin
spoiled my new sweater
b
: to damage the quality or effect of
a quarrel spoiled the party
c
: to decay or lose freshness, value, or usefulness by being kept too long
the milk spoiled
3
: to damage the disposition of by letting get away with too much
spoil a child
4
: to have an eager desire
spoiling for a fight

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