plunder

1 of 2

verb

plun·​der ˈplən-dər 

plundered; plundering ˈplən-d(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

a

: to take the goods of by force (as in war) : pillage, sack

invaders plundered the town

b

: to take by force or wrongfully : steal, loot

plundered artifacts from the tomb

2

: to make extensive use of as if by plundering : use or use up wrongfully

plunder the land

intransitive verb

: to commit robbery or looting

plunderer

ˈplən-dər-ər 

noun

plunder

2 of 2

noun

1

: an act of plundering : pillaging

2

: something taken by force, theft, or fraud : loot

3

chiefly dialectal : personal or household effects

Synonyms

Verb

• despoil
• loot
• maraud
• pillage
• ransack
• sack

Noun

• booty
• loot
• pillage
• spoil
• swag

Choose the Right Synonym for plunder

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 plunder in a Sentence

Verb

The village was plundered by the invading army.

Thieves had long ago plundered the tomb.

The soldiers continued plundering for days.

Noun

the plunder of the village

All evidence suggested that the plunder of the tomb had happened long ago.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

And neither Coppola nor Snyder deals with how ideologues have plundered the West. —Armond White, National Review, 9 Oct. 2024

Clearly, the rats’ numbers were not limited by resources, as there was always more garbage to be plundered. —Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2024

Noun

Major museums in the West devoted to the presentation and preservation of art objects have fitfully begun acknowledging their ties to histories of violence and plunder. —Leslie Camhi, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2024

But unlike the pirates of the sea, the plunder for the pirates of the web is said to be time, not money. —Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 10 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

German plündern

First Known Use

Verb

1632, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

1643, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

plunder

1 of 2 verb

plun·​der ˈplən-dər 

plundered; plundering -d(ə-)riŋ 

: to rob especially openly and by force (as in a raid)

plunderer

-dər-ər 

noun

plunder

2 of 2 noun

1

: an act of plundering

2

: something taken by force or theft : loot