Where does “spoil” come from?
Spoil comes from Middle English spoilen, from Old French espoillier, from Latin spoliāre meaning to strip or plunder, derived from spolio.
spoil (English): To strip of their arms or armour; To strip or...
Definitions
- To strip of their arms or armour; To strip or...
Ancestry of “spoil”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | spoilen | — |
| 2 | Old French | espuler | — |
| 3 | Latin | spoliare | present active infinitive of spoliō;... |
| 4 | Latin | spolio | I strip, deprive or rob of covering or clothing,... |
| 5 | Latin | spolium | the skin or hide of an animal stripped off; the... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)pel- | to split in two, split in half; to speak with a... |