Meaning & use
pillage
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Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
To rob a place violently and carry off its goods, typically in war or during a raid.
Grammar: Takes an object, or stands alone: raiders pillaged the village; they pillaged and burned.
Patterns
- pillage something
- pillage and plunder
Invading soldiers pillaged the town and left it in ruins.
Pirates pillaged ships along the coast for years.
The mob pillaged shops during the unrest.
verbtransitivefigurative
To strip or exploit a place or resource in a greedy, damaging way.
Grammar: Figurative use; takes an object: pillage the rainforest.
Patterns
- pillage something for something
Developers pillaged the forest for timber.
Critics say the company pillaged the pension fund.
Tourists have pillaged the ancient site for souvenirs.
noununcountable
The act of violently stealing goods, especially in war.
Grammar: Usually without an article: the pillage of the city.
Patterns
- the pillage of something
Historians describe the pillage that followed the siege.
The pillage of the abbey lasted three days.
Villagers feared pillage when the army approached.
Word forms
| third person singular | pillages |
|---|---|
| past tense | pillaged |
| past participle | pillaged |
| -ing form | pillaging |
Common combinations
- pillage and plunder
- The raiders came to pillage and plunder.
- pillage a village
- Soldiers pillaged a village on the border.
- pillage the countryside
- Armies pillaged the countryside as they marched.
- pillage a tomb
- Thieves pillaged the tomb centuries ago.
- pillage and burn
- Stories describe invaders who pillaged and burned every farm.
Synonyms and how they differ
- plunder
- Plunder is almost identical but can also mean taking goods by any unfair means, even in peacetime.
- loot
- Loot is more informal and often applies to riots or disasters, not just war.
- ransack
- Ransack stresses searching a place and wrecking it, whether or not goods are carried off.
- sack
- Sack means to attack and plunder a whole town after conquering it.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: pillage or pilfer? pillage or pillar?
pillage vs pilfer
Pilfer means to steal small things quietly, not violently raid a whole place.
pillage vs pillar
A pillar is an upright support, with a different spelling and meaning.
Practice
After the city fell, the invading army began to ___ the homes and temples for gold.
Choose one answer.
Pillage means to rob by force in war. Guard and restore would mean protecting or repairing, which does not fit invaders hunting gold.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pillage”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.