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Despoiling

 - 3 dictionary results

de⋅spoil

  [di-spoil]
Use Despoiling in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
to strip of possessions, things of value, etc.; rob; plunder; pillage.
Origin:
1175–1225; ME despoilen < OF despoillier < L dēspoliāre to strip, rob, plunder, equiv. to dē- de- + spoliāre to plunder; see spoil

Related forms:
de⋅spoil⋅er, noun
de⋅spoil⋅ment, noun

Synonyms:
dispossess, divest; rifle, sack; fleece.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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de·spoil   (dĭ-spoil')   
tr.v.   de·spoiled, de·spoil·ing, de·spoils

  1. To sack; plunder.

  2. To deprive of something valuable by force; rob: a region despoiled of its scenic beauty by unchecked development.


[Middle English despoilen, from Old French despoillier, from Latin dēspoliāre : dē-, de- + spoliāre, to plunder (from spolium, booty).]
de·spoil'er n., de·spoil'ment n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

despoil 
1297, from O.Fr. despoillier, from L. despoliare, from de- "entirely" + spoliare "to strip of clothing, rob," from spolium "armor, booty" (see spoil).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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