Mess vs Spoil - What's the difference?
mess | spoil |
(obsolete) Mass; church service.
A quantity of food set on a table at one time; provision of food for a person or party for one meal; also, the food given to an animal at one time.
* Milton
A number of persons who eat together, and for whom food is prepared in common; especially, persons in the military or naval service who eat at the same table.
* 1610 , , IV. iv. 11:
A set of four (from the old practice of dividing companies into sets of four at dinner).
(US) The milk given by a cow at one milking.
(label) To take meals with a mess.
(label) To belong to a mess.
(label) To eat (with others).
(label) To supply with a mess.
A disagreeable mixture or confusion of things; hence, a situation resulting from blundering or from misunderstanding; a disorder.
(label) A large quantity or number.
(label) Excrement.
(label) To make a mess of.
(label) To throw into confusion.
(label) To interfere.
(archaic) To strip (someone who has been killed or defeated) of their arms or armour.
(archaic) To strip or deprive (someone) of their possessions; to rob, despoil.
* 1526 , (William Tyndale), trans. (Bible) , (w) IX:
* 1590 , (Edmund Spenser), (The Faerie Queene) , VII:
*, I.2.4.vii:
(ambitransitive, archaic) To plunder, pillage (a city, country etc.).
* (Edmund Spenser) (c.1552–1599)
(obsolete) To carry off (goods) by force; to steal.
* (Bible), (w) iii. 27
To ruin; to damage (something) in some way making it unfit for use.
* (Jeremy Taylor) (1613–1677)
*
* 2011 , ‘What the Arab papers say’, The Economist , 5 Aug 2011:
To ruin the character of, by overindulgence; to coddle or pamper to excess.
Of food, to become bad, sour or rancid; to decay.
To render (a ballot paper) invalid by deliberately defacing it.
* 2003 , David Nicoll, The Guardian , letter:
To reveal the ending of (a story etc.); to ruin (a surprise) by exposing it ahead of time.
(Also in plural: spoils ) Plunder taken from an enemy or victim.
(uncountable) Material (such as rock or earth) removed in the course of an excavation, or in mining or dredging]]. [[tailings, Tailings.
In obsolete|lang=en terms the difference between mess and spoil
is that mess is (obsolete) mass; church service while spoil is (obsolete) to carry off (goods) by force; to steal.As nouns the difference between mess and spoil
is that mess is (obsolete) mass; church service or mess can be a disagreeable mixture or confusion of things; hence, a situation resulting from blundering or from misunderstanding; a disorder while spoil is (also in plural: spoils ) plunder taken from an enemy or victim.As verbs the difference between mess and spoil
is that mess is (label) to take meals with a mess or mess can be (label) to make a mess of while spoil is (archaic) to strip (someone who has been killed or defeated) of their arms or armour.mess
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) (m), partly from (etyl) . More at (m); see also (m).Noun
(es)- A mess of pottage.
- At their savoury dinner set / Of herbs and other country messes .
- the wardroom mess
- But that our feasts / In every mess have folly, and the feeders / Digest it with accustom,
- (Latimer)
Derived terms
* Eton mess * lose the number of one's mess * mess hall * mess up * Mills MessExternal links
*Verb
External links
*Etymology 2
Perhaps a corruption of (etyl) , compare (muss), or derived from Etymology 1 "mixed foods, as for animals".Noun
(-)Quotations
* (English Citations of "mess")Synonyms
* see alsoVerb
(es)Derived terms
(terms derived from "mess") * messy * mess around * mess up * mess withExternal links
*References
*Anagrams
* ----spoil
English
Verb
- All that herde hym wer amased and sayde: ys nott this he that spoylled them whych called on this name in Jerusalem?
- To do her dye (quoth Vna) were despight, / And shame t'auenge so weake an enimy; / But spoile her of her scarlot robe, and let her fly.
- Roger, that rich Bishop of Salisbury,through grief ran mad, spoke and did he knew not what.
- Outlaws, which, lurking in woods, used to break forth to rob and spoil .
- No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man.
- Spiritual pride spoils many graces.
- "I don't want to spoil any comparison you are going to make," said Jim, "but I was at Winchester and New College." ¶ "That will do," said Mackenzie. "I was dragged up at the workhouse school till I was twelve. […]"
- ‘This is a great day for us. Let us not spoil it by saying the wrong thing, by promoting a culture of revenge, or by failing to treat the former president with respect.’
- Make sure you put the milk back in the fridge, otherwise it will spoil .
- Dr Jonathan Grant (Letters, April 22) feels the best way to show his disaffection with political parties over Iraq is to spoil his ballot paper.
