Headway's Word of the Week archive

spoil (verb)

If you spoil something, you make it worse in some way. It often means that it is made less attractive or less enjoyable.

The wedding was nice, but it rained all day, which spoiled the party in the garden afterwards.
The newly built office block has spoilt the view from my window.

(The Past Simple and past participle can be spelt in two ways: spoiled or spoilt.)

Check out things you can spoil

You can spoil a dress by spilling red wine on it.
You can spoil your food by putting too much salt on it.
You can spoil your someone's wedding day by arriving uninvited!
You can spoil a child by not being strict enough, and by allowing him/her to have anything they want.
You can spoil your girlfriend by buying her flowers and taking her to a nice restaurant.
You can spoil somebody's chances by not helping them.

Check out these expressions

My next door neighbour is a spoilsport. He calls the police if we have a party after 10 o'clock, and if the children kick their football into his garden, he refuses to give it back.
My boss behaves like a spoilt child sometimes. He gets very angry if he can't do something exactly the way he wants.
The guys in the pub were spoiling for a fight. They were deliberately being rude to the people on the next table, hoping to make them angry.
Should I have the fish or the beef or the lamb? I really don't know – I'm spoilt for choice.
On Mother's day, the children bought me flowers, chocolates and jewellery, made me breakfast in bed, and took me for dinner. They really spoilt me rotten.

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