Thesaurus results for LOOT

Q: How does the noun 'loot' differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of loot are booty , plunder , prize , spoils , and spoil . While all these words mean "something taken from another by force or craft," loot applies especially to what is taken from victims of a catastrophe. // picked through the ruins for loot

Q: When could 'booty' be used to replace 'loot'?

While in some cases nearly identical to loot , booty implies plunder to be shared among confederates. // thieves dividing up their booty

Q: When might 'plunder' be a better fit than 'loot'?

In some situations, the words plunder and loot are roughly equivalent. However, plunder applies to what is taken not only in war but in robbery, banditry, grafting, or swindling. // a bootlegger's plunder

Q: In what contexts can 'prize' take the place of 'loot'?

Although the words prize and loot have much in common, prize applies to spoils captured on the high seas or territorial waters of the enemy. // the wartime right of seizing prizes at sea

Q: How do 'spoil' and 'spoils' relate to one another, in the sense of 'loot'?

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

loot 1 of 2

noun

ˈlüt

Definition of loot next

as in plunder

valuables stolen or taken by force the burglar was caught when he foolishly stopped to examine the loot from the robbery

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in cash

something (as pieces of stamped metal or printed paper) customarily and legally used as a medium of exchange, a measure of value, or a means of payment a top-ranked golfer earning plenty of loot

Synonyms & Similar Words

loot

2 of 2

verb

as in to plunder

to search through with the intent of committing robbery the bandits looted the archaeological dig before riding off into the night

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun loot differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of loot are booty, plunder, prize, spoils, and spoil. While all these words mean "something taken from another by force or craft," loot applies especially to what is taken from victims of a catastrophe.

picked through the ruins for loot

When could booty be used to replace loot?

While in some cases nearly identical to loot, booty implies plunder to be shared among confederates.

thieves dividing up their booty

When might plunder be a better fit than loot?

In some situations, the words plunder and loot are roughly equivalent. However, plunder applies to what is taken not only in war but in robbery, banditry, grafting, or swindling.

a bootlegger's plunder

In what contexts can prize take the place of loot?

Although the words prize and loot have much in common, prize applies to spoils captured on the high seas or territorial waters of the enemy.

the wartime right of seizing prizes at sea

How do spoil and spoils relate to one another, in the sense of loot?

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

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 loot

Noun

Costco cargo, loads of mulch, sports equipment, and holiday loot all need a place to go. —

Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2024 Among those convicted were people involved in the flash-mob style robbery of Nordstrom at the Westfield Topanga Shopping Center last year, where a mob of about 50 people ransacked racks and display cases, rushing out of the store with tens of thousands of dollars in loot. —

Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2024

Verb

The objects in question were linked to several ongoing investigations, among them, a trafficking network that systemically looted the ancient city of Bubon in Turkey and trafficked the works to New York. —

Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 16 Sep. 2024 Those objects had been removed from the site following reports of looting there, and the similarities between the antiquities suggested that the necklace had been illicitly removed from the same site earlier. —

News Desk, Artforum, 6 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for loot

Recent Examples of Synonyms for loot

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