DEPREDATE, verb intransitive [Latin To plunder; prey.] 1. To plunder; to rob; to pillage; to take the property of an enemy or of a foreign country by force; as, the army depredated the enemys country. That kind of war which depredates and distresses individuals. 2. To prey upon; to waste; to spoil. 3. To devour; to destroy by eating; as, wild animals depredate the corn. DEPREDATE, verb intransitive To take plunder or prey; to commit waste; as, the troops depredated on the country.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI