trophy

Meanings

Noun

• An object, usually in the form of a statuette, cup, or shield, awarded for success in a competition or to mark a special achievement.
• An object taken as a prize by a hunter or conqueror, especially one that is displayed.
• Any emblem of success; a status symbol.
• 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.

Verb

• To adorn with trophies.
• To win a trophy in a competition.

Origin

• From Middle French trophée, from Latin trophaeum ("a sign of victory, a monument"), tropaeum, from Ancient Greek τρόπαιον ("monument of an enemy's defeat"), from neuter of τροπαῖος, from τροπή.