SPOLIATION Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

spoliation

noun

Definition of spoliation

as in predation

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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.

Recent Examples of spoliation However, the present tax system does not encourage conservation but rather encourages spoliation of our environment through greed and profit based on an income tax system. — Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 5 May 2026 McGinnis’ lawyer said that was tantamount to spoliation — or destruction of evidence. — Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2026 During deliberations, the jury focused almost entirely on the spoliation issue. — Lars Daniel, Forbes.com, 22 July 2025 Last Friday, Damien Marshall and other King & Spalding attorneys on behalf of MSG filed a memorandum of law in opposition to Oakley’s motion for what are known as spoliation sanctions, meaning a punishment for failure to preserve relevant evidence. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 14 May 2025 An attorney who allows a client to continue using their phone risks spoliation as normal usage can overwrite or erase crucial data. — Lars Daniel, Forbes, 24 Mar. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for spoliation

Noun

My portrayal of Gordon Gekko is the face of corporate predation to this day.

— Michael Douglas, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026
Deer ultimately live the longest wherever the habitat can provide them the most nutritious food to sustain their activity and quality cover to hide from predation and hunting pressure.

— Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of predation

Noun

This is among the many depredations that this supposedly mainstream Administration has committed.

— David Remnick, New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2026
That compares with 21 depredations by wolves so far this year, with about $25,000 paid to ranchers whose cattle were killed by wolves.

— Andrew McKean, Outdoor Life, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of depredation

Noun

In Nolan’s telling, his deceit and plundering portend the collapse of the Bronze Age—a foreboding warning about greedy, fading empires that feels a little too relevant.

— Natasha O'Neill, Vanity Fair, 16 July 2026
Some have traveled farther as part of colonial-era collections — as far as the British Museum — and been returned; a story unto itself about the plundering of the natural world in the age of empire, and institutions reckoning with their inheritance.

— Tom Page, CNN Money, 19 Mar. 2026

Definition of plundering

Noun

The interior ministry says acid has been hurled in some cases, and that people intent on destruction and looting have grafted themselves onto the high schoolers’ movement.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 Oct. 2026
The looting targeted the TPLF administration office, the regional police headquarters and some shops, Filmon said Sunday.

— Rodney Muhumuza, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of looting

Noun

Their rackets—plunder, opium trafficking, and much else—were often run not by members of established yakuza gangs but by fixers and political operators who exploited their connections with the Imperial Japanese Army.

— Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
The law came in response to the historic genocide against Indigenous peoples, the forcible removal from their ancestral lands and widespread plunder of Indian grave sites by European settlers, the American government and zealous archaeologists.

— Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 12 Sep. 2026

Definition of plunder

Noun

Homer may have viewed Odysseus’s deceit and pillaging as glorious.

— Luis Parrales, The Atlantic, 26 July 2026
Taking the Scenic Route Home After their successful sneak-attack pillaging of Troy, Odysseus’ comrade Menelaus (Jon Bernthal) and his men pack up and head back to Sparta.

— Whitney Friedlander, Vulture, 17 July 2026

Definition of pillaging

Browse Nearby Words

spoliating

spoliation

spoliations

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“Spoliation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spoliation. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of spoliation

noun

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