# spoil

Pronunciation: say "SPOYL" /spɔɪl/

## Verb

1. To ruin something, or damage it so that it becomes undesirable or unusable.
   - Simple: To damage something so badly that it can no longer be used or enjoyed.
   - _A single careless remark can spoil an otherwise perfect evening._
   - _Rust had spoiled the antique tools beyond any hope of repair._
2. Of food, to go bad: to become sour, rancid, or decayed.
   - Simple: To go bad, the way food does when it gets too old to eat.
   - _Meat and dairy spoil faster in warm, humid weather._
   - _The leftovers had spoiled by the time we got home._
3. To ruin someone's character through overindulgence, or to coddle and pamper them to excess.
   - Simple: To harm someone's behavior by giving them far too much of what they want.
   - _Indulgent parents can spoil a child by refusing to ever say no._
   - _Years of constant praise had spoiled him into expecting applause for everything._
4. To ruin a surprise by revealing major events or the ending of a story before someone experiences it.
   - Simple: To ruin a story for someone by telling them what happens before they read or watch it.
   - _Reviewers who spoil the twist ruin the experience for everyone._
   - _A single tweet spoiled the finale for millions of fans._
6. To make a ballot invalid by deliberately marking or defacing it.
   - Simple: To make a voting paper count for nothing by marking it the wrong way on purpose.
   - _Protesters chose to spoil their ballots rather than back any party._
   - _Thousands of voters spoiled their papers in protest last election._
8. To redirect air upward so that an aircraft or wing produces less lift, usually using a spoiler.
   - Simple: To cut down the lift of a plane or wing by pushing air upward, usually with a flap called a spoiler.
   - _Engineers design panels that spoil lift to slow the aircraft on landing._
   - _Raised flaps spoiled the lift, and the plane settled quickly onto the runway._
9. To be very eager for something, especially a fight or confrontation.
   - Simple: To want something so much that you can hardly wait, especially a fight.
   - _Hotheads who spoil for a fight rarely think about the consequences._
   - _The crowd was spoiling for a confrontation with the police._

## Noun

5. Goods, money, or other valuables taken from a defeated enemy or a victim.
   - Simple: Goods or valuables taken from an enemy you have beaten.
   - _Victorious troops claimed the spoil from the captured fortress._
   - _The general distributed the spoils to his most loyal officers._
7. Rock, earth, or similar material removed during excavation, mining, or dredging, which may be reused elsewhere.
   - Simple: Rock and earth that are dug up and removed during digging, mining, or clearing out waterways.
   - _Engineers tested the spoil before using it as fill for the embankment._
   - _The mine produced more spoil than the site could safely store._

## Verb

10. To plunder or pillage a city, country, or other place, carrying off its goods by force. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To rob a city or country of its goods by force, especially during war.
   - _The conquerors marched inland to spoil every city in their path._
   - _The Vikings spoiled the monastery, taking gold and silver from its altars._
11. To strip or deprive someone of their possessions; to rob or despoil a person. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To take away all of someone's belongings by force, robbing them completely.
   - _The tyrant moved to spoil the merchants of their gold and lands._
   - _Thieves spoiled the pilgrims of their few possessions on the mountain road._
12. To strip a slain or defeated enemy of their weapons and armor. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To take the weapons and armor from someone who has been killed or beaten in battle.
   - _Warriors would spoil their enemies of armor after every battle._
   - _The Greek hero spoiled the fallen Trojan of his bronze breastplate._
14. To seize goods that belong to someone else and take them away by force. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To carry away goods by force, stealing them from a place.

## Noun

13. The act of taking plunder from an enemy or victim; pillage or spoliation. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: The act of robbing an enemy or victim and taking their goods by force.
   - _The general permitted the spoil of the conquered province for three days._
   - _Widespread spoil left the region impoverished for a generation._

## Origin

From Middle English spoilen, borrowed from Old French espoillier, which comes from Latin spoliāre meaning 'to pillage, ruin, spoil.'

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/spoil (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).