1
as in to taint
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
too much coddling will spoil the child
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to decompose
to go through decomposition
the meat has spoiled
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to damage
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
know when to stop, for an unnecessary brushstroke can spoil a painted portrait
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to indulge
to treat with great or excessive care
when they were newlyweds, the wife tended to spoil her husband, but she soon got over that
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spoil
Phil Hay, New York Times, 2 May 2025
But as these four moguls try to enjoy their spoils, their phones soon start blowing up with news of crises around the world — financial collapse, political instability, violence in the streets, all that good stuff.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2025
cleveland, 17 Dec. 2022
So, who exactly could spoil the Astros' pursuit of a third Commissioner's Trophy?
—Michael Shapiro, Chron, 12 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for spoil
Noun
By a quirk of fate, the Europa League is throwing together two clubs and two coaches who need the trophy and the spoils from it badly.
—Phil Hay, New York Times, 2 May 2025
But as these four moguls try to enjoy their spoils, their phones soon start blowing up with news of crises around the world — financial collapse, political instability, violence in the streets, all that good stuff.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2025
Verb
However, Cleveland can still spoil a potential playoff run for Washington.
—cleveland, 17 Dec. 2022
So, who exactly could spoil the Astros' pursuit of a third Commissioner's Trophy?
—Michael Shapiro, Chron, 12 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for spoil
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spoil
Noun
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The game also featured loot boxes filled with character trophies based on Disney properties, which would give abilities to the player character and could be upgraded over time.—
Oliver Brandt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 May 2025
-
Current dungeons only reward loot on encounter completion in the form of a single chest drop, which can be either a weapon or armor.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes,
5 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Their prosecution was tainted by multiple constitutional violations and political bias.—
Andrew Stanton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 May 2025
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White died nine days later on Nov. 21 The best friend of a British woman who died after drinking alcohol that authorities suspect was tainted with methanol while visiting Laos is speaking out.—
Becca Longmire,
People.com,
27 May 2025
Verb
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This multi-agent architecture enables organizations to decompose complex business processes into manageable, specialized components.—
Janakiram MSV,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
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Las Vegas Metro Police discovered the body of Matthew Kelemen, 56, decomposing and wrapped in a tarp inside a locked plastic bin near Fremont Street on May 20 after responding to reports of a foul odor, the department wrote in a press release.—
Christina Coulter,
People.com,
27 May 2025
Verb
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No one was hurt but the Toyota 4Runner the men were inside and another vehicle were damaged.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2025
-
The fire began on the third floor, severely damaging the entire level, while water damage affected the floors below.—
Samantha Moilanen,
Chicago Tribune,
28 May 2025
Verb
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Their admirably robust menu indulges coastal cravings via seasonal oysters and Gulf shrimp while appeasing land lovers with steakhouse favorites and handmade pastas.—
Lisa Cericola,
Southern Living,
26 May 2025
-
This multicultural circus indulges the racial stereotyping that should be Hwang’s subject.—
Armond White,
National Review,
21 May 2025
Noun
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Last month, in another headline-grabbing food plunder, 100,000 organic eggs were taken from a distribution trailer in Pennsylvania.—
Adeel Hassan,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
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Such tactics included the extraordinary plunder and destruction of the Hundred Years’ War and the fire bombings of cities in World War II.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
22 Apr. 2025
Verb
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However, relatively decent growth fueled by Putin's record military spending has been marred by inflation and a worker shortage impacted by those fleeing the draft and troop losses in Ukraine as experts warn of longer terms problems for the economy.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 May 2025
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Albania, which has started full membership negotiations with the European Union, has been plagued in its post-communist era with corruption that has marred its democratic, economic and social development.—
Llazar Semini,
Los Angeles Times,
27 May 2025
Verb
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Guinness noted that the actor had to jump out of a helicopter from a minimum height of 7,500 feet — sometimes while wearing a 50-pound camera rig — and that the parachute could only burn for about three seconds before completely disintegrating, forcing Cruise to deploy a backup chute.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
5 June 2025
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Instead the vehicle spun out of control and disintegrated during atmospheric reentry.—
Gayoung Lee,
Scientific American,
28 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spoil.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spoil. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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