loot

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/luːt/
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Goods or money taken dishonestly, the act of taking them by force or disorder, and later informal senses for game rewards, cash, and valued hauls.
Practice using loot in conversation until it feels natural

Examples

  • The boss dropped rare loot after the fight.
  • The kids spread their birthday loot across the floor.
  • Officials were accused of looting public funds.
  • The museum returned loot taken during the occupation.
  • Some people tried to loot abandoned buildings after the fire.

Similar words

items
rewards
ransack
plunder
dough
claim
drops
takings
money
bucks

Meanings

Stolen valuables

noun
crime
neutral
Goods, money, or other valuables taken by force, theft, pillaging, or corruption.

Usage

Use loot for the things taken, not for the violence or disorder around the taking.

Examples

  • Police recovered the stolen loot from a warehouse.
  • The soldiers divided the loot after the raid.
  • Investigators traced the loot from the bank robbery.
  • The museum returned loot taken during the occupation.
  • Officials hid the loot from the corrupt contract.

Common mistakes

Legal purchases are wrongly called loot when no theft, force, or illicit gain is involved.
IncorrectCorrect
I bought the loot at the market. I bought the goods at the market.
The museum displayed loot it had legally borrowed. The museum displayed artifacts it had legally borrowed.
The charity received loot from donors. The charity received donations from donors.

Similar words

plunder
spoils
booty
swag
haul
takings

Steal in disorder or by force

verb
crime
neutral
To steal goods from a place or person, especially during war, rioting, disaster, or another breakdown of control.

Usage

Use loot when the stealing is tied to disorder, force, large-scale robbery, or corrupt stripping of resources.

Examples

  • Rioters looted several shops overnight.
  • The army looted homes as it retreated.
  • Officials were accused of looting public funds.
  • Some people tried to loot abandoned buildings after the fire.
  • The gang looted the warehouse before fleeing.

Common mistakes

The regular past tense ending is sometimes dropped, and the verb is wrongly used for damage without theft.
IncorrectCorrect
They loot the store yesterday. They looted the store yesterday.
The storm looted the coastal town. The storm damaged the coastal town.
She was loot the shop during the riot. She was looting the shop during the riot.

Similar words

plunder
pillage
ransack
sack
rob
raid

Game rewards

noun
gaming
neutral
Items, currency, gear, or other rewards collected in a video game, often after defeating enemies or opening chests.

Usage

Use loot for rewards that the game gives or lets a player collect, not for every object in the inventory.

Examples

  • The boss dropped rare loot after the fight.
  • Players shared the loot from the dungeon chest.
  • Better loot appears on higher difficulty levels.
  • The raid offered armor, weapons, and other loot.
  • She sold unwanted loot for extra gold.

Common mistakes

Store items and ordinary inventory are often mislabeled as loot when they were not earned, found, or dropped as rewards.
IncorrectCorrect
All items in the settings menu are loot. All items in the settings menu are options.
I bought loot from the pause screen. I bought items from the pause screen.
The quest gives loot as a penalty. The quest gives loot as a reward.

Similar words

gear
drops
rewards
treasure
items
prizes

Collect game rewards

verb
gaming
neutral
To collect items, currency, or rewards from a defeated enemy, container, or area in a video game.

Usage

Use loot for collecting game rewards from a body, chest, cache, or cleared area.

Examples

  • The player looted the chest before leaving the room.
  • Remember to loot the boss after the fight.
  • We looted every crate in the abandoned base.
  • She stopped to loot the fallen enemies.
  • The party loots the dungeon before returning to town.

Common mistakes

The game verb is sometimes confused with buying, crafting, or equipping an item.
IncorrectCorrect
I looted a sword at the shop. I bought a sword at the shop.
Loot the helmet from your inventory. Equip the helmet from your inventory.
We loot a chest after we opened it yesterday. We looted a chest after we opened it yesterday.

Similar words

collect
gather
pick up
claim
take
harvest

Money or a valued haul

noun
everyday
slang
Money, valuables, gifts, or other things gathered or received, especially in casual speech about cash or a haul.

Usage

Use loot casually for money or a pile of valued things, but avoid it in formal financial writing.

Examples

  • He spent all his loot on concert tickets.
  • The kids spread their birthday loot across the floor.
  • After the gig, the band split the loot evenly.
  • She saved enough loot for a weekend trip.
  • They showed off their holiday loot after opening presents.

Common mistakes

Formal contexts sound wrong when loot replaces precise words such as revenue, salary, donations, or presents.
IncorrectCorrect
The company reported its loot for the quarter. The company reported its revenue for the quarter.
My salary loot arrives on Friday. My salary arrives on Friday.
The children thanked everyone for the birthday revenue. The children thanked everyone for the birthday loot.

Similar words

cash
money
bucks
dough
moolah
haul

Usage

Use loot carefully around theft, disorder, games, or slang money, since the context decides whether it sounds criminal, playful, or casual.

Common mistakes

Legal goods become misleading as loot unless the context is slang, gaming, gifts, or a casual haul.

Etymology

From Anglo-Indian English, borrowed from Hindi and Urdu lūṭ, related to Sanskrit forms for booty or stolen property and a root meaning to snatch.

FAQ

What does loot mean as a noun?

Loot usually means goods, money, or valuables taken by force, theft, pillaging, or corruption.

How is loot used as a verb?

To loot is to steal from a place or person, especially during war, rioting, disaster, or large-scale disorder.

What does loot mean in video games?

In games, loot means reward items, gear, currency, or treasure that players collect, often from enemies, quests, or chests.

Can loot mean money?

Yes. In slang, loot can mean money or a valued haul, even when it is not stolen.

Is loot always negative?

The crime senses are negative, but the gaming and casual money senses can be playful or neutral.

Where does loot come from?

It entered English through Anglo-Indian use from Hindi and Urdu lūṭ, with older Sanskrit relatives connected to booty or stolen property.

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