Thesaurus results for PILLAGE

Q: How does the verb 'pillage' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of pillage are despoil , devastate , ravage , sack , and waste . While all these words mean "to lay waste by plundering or destroying," pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack . // settlements pillaged by Vikings

Q: Where would 'despoil' be a reasonable alternative to 'pillage'?

In some situations, the words despoil and pillage are roughly equivalent. However, despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction. // the Nazis despoiled the art museums

Q: When is it sensible to use 'devastate' instead of 'pillage'?

The synonyms devastate and pillage are sometimes interchangeable, but devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area. // an earthquake devastated the city

Q: When might 'ravage' be a better fit than 'pillage'?

While the synonyms ravage and pillage are close in meaning, ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction. // a hurricane ravaged the coast

Q: When would 'sack' be a good substitute for 'pillage'?

The words sack and pillage can be used in similar contexts, but sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place. // barbarians sacked ancient Rome

Q: When could 'waste' be used to replace 'pillage'?

The words waste and pillage are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action. // years of drought had wasted the area

pillage 1 of 2

noun

ˈpi-lij

Definition of pillage next

as in plunder

valuables stolen or taken by force the pirate ship was laden with the pillage of merchant ships from across the Spanish Main

Synonyms & Similar Words

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pillage

2 of 2

verb

as in to plunder

to search through with the intent of committing robbery soldiers pillaging the countryside for anything of value

Synonyms & Similar Words

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How does the verb pillage contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of pillage are despoil, devastate, ravage, sack, and waste. While all these words mean "to lay waste by plundering or destroying," pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack.

settlements pillaged by Vikings

Where would despoil be a reasonable alternative to pillage?

In some situations, the words despoil and pillage are roughly equivalent. However, despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction.

the Nazis despoiled the art museums

When is it sensible to use devastate instead of pillage?

The synonyms devastate and pillage are sometimes interchangeable, but devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area.

an earthquake devastated the city

When might ravage be a better fit than pillage?

While the synonyms ravage and pillage are close in meaning, ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction.

a hurricane ravaged the coast

When would sack be a good substitute for pillage?

The words sack and pillage can be used in similar contexts, but sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place.

barbarians sacked ancient Rome

When could waste be used to replace pillage?

The words waste and pillage are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action.

years of drought had wasted the area

Examples Sentences

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 pillage

Noun

Slave-trading, mostly, along with mass murder, pillage and corruption. —

Sam Sacks, WSJ, 6 Oct. 2023 In contrast to their entry into Eastern European countries as liberators, Soviet soldiers entered Königsberg in 1945 as avengers, engaging in months of pillage, rape, and murder. —

Nicole Eaton, Foreign Affairs, 22 Aug. 2023

Verb

Meanwhile, the United States should mobilize a global effort to seize the overseas assets of rulers who have been pillaging their countries and return them to those countries. —

Madeleine K. Albright, Foreign Affairs, 19 Oct. 2021 No one in Hollywood has forgotten the images of the U.S. Capitol being ransacked and pillaged on Jan. 6, 2021, following Trump’s loss to Biden. —

Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for pillage

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pillage

Noun

Swiss zoologists, botanists, engineers, priests and nuns from missionary societies, merchants and rentier businesspeople, warlords and mercenaries ventured out to participate in plunder and looting as adjuncts or sidekicks of the stronger world powers and financiers.

Percy Zvomuya, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2024
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