pillage

American  

[pil-ij] / ˈpɪl ɪdʒ /

verb (used with object)

pillaged, pillaging

1. to strip ruthlessly of money or goods by open violence, as in war; plunder.

   The barbarians pillaged every conquered city.

   Synonyms:

   rape, despoil, spoil, sack, rob

2. to take as booty.

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verb (used without object)

pillaged, pillaging

1. to rob with open violence; take booty.

   Soldiers roamed the countryside, pillaging and killing.

noun

1. the act of plundering, especially in war.

   Synonyms:

   spoliation, depredation, rapine

2. booty or spoil.

   Synonyms:

   plunder

pillage British  

/ ˈpɪlɪdʒ /

verb

1. to rob (a town, village, etc) of (booty or spoils), esp during a war

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noun

1. the act of pillaging

2. something obtained by pillaging; booty

Other Word Forms

• pillager
  noun
• unpillaged
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pillage

1350–1400; Middle English pilage ( see pill ³, -age), modeled on Middle French pillage (derivative of piller to pillage, originally, to abuse, mistreat, tear, of uncertain origin)

Explanation

To pillage is a term of war that means to take everything of value from a place that you've conquered, but these days, pillage can be used to talk about anyone who takes what's not theirs. It wasn't enough just to win a battle. A conquering army had to pillage entire cities, taking everything of value that wasn't nailed down. Recently, several European families have won cases in international courts against museums displaying art that was looted by the Nazis during World War II. These families claim that the art was pillaged during the war and that, rather than being displayed on museum walls, it should be returned to its rightful owners.

Example Sentences

Cerberus’ approach is “extremely aggressive,” says Brendan Ballou, a former federal prosecutor and author of Plunder: Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America.

From Slate • Feb. 10, 2025

No wonder Galeano subtitled his classic, “Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent.”

From Salon • Jul. 15, 2018

Pillage their sacred trees, speed through the slow-skiing section-you're untouchable, Mr. Big Time.

From Time Magazine Archive

The 'goodly gulf' is Pillage Bay in the district of Saguenay, and the hill is Mount Ste Genevieve.

From The Mariner of St. Malo : A chronicle of the voyages of Jacques Cartier by Wrong, George McKinnon

Cartier set sail again from St Malo with three vessels on the 16th of May 1536, and passing through the strait of Belle Isle anchored on the 9th of August in Pillage Bay, opposite Anticosti.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 4 "Carnegie Andrew" to "Casus Belli" by Various

Related Words

• desecrate
• loot
• maraud
• pilfer
• ransack
• ravage