noun · verb · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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/spɔɪlz/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -ɔɪlz
CMU ARPABET:S P OY1 L Z
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
That which is taken from another by violence; especially, the plunder taken from an enemy; pillage, booty.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: plural, plural-only
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Waste material left over in the course of excavation, construction, mining, or dredging operations.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: plural, plural-only
Examples
dredging spoils
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
Public offices and their benefits regarded as the peculiar property of a successful party or faction, to be bestowed for its own advantage.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: plural, plural-only
Examples
To the victor belong the spoils.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
verb
Meaning 4
third-person singular simple present indicative of spoil
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract