trophy
English · Thesaurus
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trophy
- /ˈtɹəʊfi/ UK
- /ˈtɹɒfi/ UK, obsolete
- /ˈtɹoʊfi/ US
Rhymes with -əʊfi
Where it comes from
From Middle French trophée, from Latin trophaeum (“a sign of victory, a monument”), tropaeum, from Ancient Greek τρόπαιον (trópaion, “monument of an enemy's defeat”), from neuter of τροπαῖος (tropaîos, “of defeat”), from τροπή (tropḗ, “a rout, a turning of an enemy”). Doublet of tropæum.
noun trophies
- An object, usually in the form of a statuette, cup, or shield, awarded for success in a competition or to mark a special achievement. He won the trophy in a running competition.
- An object taken as a prize by a hunter, or a conqueror or belligerent, especially one that is displayed. The set of antlers which hung on the wall was his prized trophy.
- Any emblem of success; a status symbol. His trophies included his second wife, his successful children, the third and fourth homes in Palm Beach and Malibu, and his three yachts.
- An object taken by a serial killer or rapist as a memento of the crime.
- A tropæum.
- A display of weaponry and other militaria, often captured from a defeated enemy, as an ornament designed for the purpose of triumphalist display by a victor or as a show of military prowess by a monarch. The souvenirs which many killers retain of their victims are often described as trophies, and Norman Bates's taxidermic interests derived from the real-life Ed Gein.
- An artifact or artwork that has been stolen by a criminal and traded on the black market.
- An animal killed by a trophy hunter that usually has its parts sold on the black market.
verb trophies · trophying · trophied
- To adorn (someone) with trophies. How many a night serene, shall I behold / Those vvarm attractive orbits, close inshrined / In ether, over vvhich Love's column rose / Marmoreal, trophied round vvith golden hair.
- To win a trophy in a competition. He trophied at the 1993, 1994, 2012 and 2015 National Championships and was most proud of winning his class at the 2017 Spring Nationals.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: prize, spoil, award, title, ornament, kill, cutting, cut, cups, stumpage, haircut, glass, cup, goblet, coupe, accolade
Translations
Talk about this word "trophy." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/trophy. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. trophy. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/trophy "trophy." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/trophy.Cite this
@misc{trophy_2026,
title = {trophy},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/trophy},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
