as in looting
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as in plundering
to search through with the intent of committing robbery
soldiers pillaging the countryside for anything of value
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pillaging
Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2025
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025
More than a dozen others immediately flooded the shattered entrance, pillaging the place — breaking display cases and grabbing thousands of dollars in jewelry.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
The internet, too, has rewired our brains in countless ways, overwhelming us with information while pillaging our attention spans.
—Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 1 Dec. 2025
If peaceable trading isn't your dream, consider the corsair life, pillaging other ships for their precious cargo.
—Alan Bradley, Space.com, 7 Oct. 2025
Noun
Amid the pillaging of homes, Roman magistrates were likely sent to the city to prevent an anarchic type of existence, based on ancient literary sources the authors referenced in the study.
—Verb
Certainly, its portrait of a futuristic society dominated by raping, pillaging youth gangs speaking a bizarre Russian-English hybrid slang struck a few different nerves — as did its tale of one teenage sociopath’s questionable reprogramming back into society after a stint in prison.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for pillaging
Noun
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Everyone wanted to return home soon, to take refuge, amid fears of possible looting that failed to materialize.—
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For instance, before the signing of the ceasefire agreement, there was lots of looting of humanitarian aid, and these looters were backed up.—
Verb
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French buccaneers spent much of the seventeenth century hiding and plundering along the northwest coast of Hispaniola, eventually realizing more money could be made farming tobacco and sugar.—
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The colonists took up where Tippu Tip left off, plundering the forests for ivory and other resources.—
Noun
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He was charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm by a felon, police said.—
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Investigators quickly linked him to two similar crimes — a $2,500 robbery of Bank of America on the 1400 block of Stockton Street, and an attempt at BMO Bank on Columbus Avenue, authorities said.—
Verb
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While guarding this mysterious gorge, these good-looking sharpshooters inevitably fall in love and join forces to contain the marauding creatures.—
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Fearing the attacker’s return and marauding gangs, the family abandoned their home in a rural stretch of farmland and fruit trees and hid in the bushes.—
Verb
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Luckily for the Bears, the Packers have allowed nearly 100 more rushing yards per game without Parsons, in addition to sacking quarterbacks less than half as often.—
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The Seahawks harassed Purdy throughout the night, sacking him three times and hitting him eight more.—
Noun
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Keith Michael Lisa, 51, of Barnegat, was charged with possession of a dangerous weapon in a federal facility and depredation of federal property, Habba announced Tuesday.—
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Federal wildlife agents confirmed the two depredation events, which took place Friday and Saturday, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.—
Verb
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People were raiding stores and so forth.—
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The biggest compliment is that teams are raiding Brentford.—
Noun
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After more than a century of plunder and strife, under tyrants as diverse as King Leopold II of Belgium and Mobutu Sese Seko, the present-day DRC still occupies the dark heart of the continent in much of the world’s imagination.—
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The Venezuelan regime is broadly unpopular in Latin America; its socialism of plunder has sent millions of desperate people into Colombia and other states.—
Cite this Entry
“Pillaging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pillaging. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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