I. ˈpləndə(r) verb
( plundered ; plundered ; plundering -d(ə)riŋ ; plunders )
Etymology: German plündern, from Middle High German plundern, from plunder, blunder household goods, clothes, from Middle Low German plunder-; akin to Middle Dutch plunder, plonder household goods, clothes
transitive verb
1.
a. : to take the goods of by force (as in war) or wrongfully : pillage , spoil , sack
laws about the plundering of nonbelligerents
b. : to take or appropriate by force or wrongfully : steal , loot
the raiders plundered all the cattle
2. : to make extensive use of material from (an author or his work) without acknowledgment
Shakespeare and his fellow-dramatists plundered the Church legends — Henry Adams
intransitive verb
: to committ robbery, spoliation, or looting
Synonyms: see rob
II. noun
( -s )
1. : an act of plundering (as in war) : pillaging ; also : spoliation by extortion
2. : something that is taken by open force (as from an enemy) or by theft or fraud : pillage , spoil , booty , loot
3. chiefly dialect
a. : personal property and effects : baggage ; also : a freight shipment : freight
b. : goods and equipment used in an indicated situation or activity
camping plunder
especially : household goods — called also house plunder
c. : trade goods : items for buying or selling
d.
(1) : profit , gains
(2) : something garnered or collected
a boyish plunder of nuts, grapes, and crab apples
e. : miscellaneous articles : junk