thief
Americannoun
plural
thievesnoun
-
a person who steals something from another
-
criminal law a person who commits theft
Usage
What does thief mean? A thief is a person who steals, especially in secret and without using force or violence.The plural of thief is thieves. The related noun theft refers to the act or an instance of stealing.In general, intentionally taking something that doesn’t belong to you makes you a thief. The word most commonly refers to a person who steals money or physical property, but a thief can steal other things, such as ideas, information, or intellectual property.The word thief typically refers to a person who steals without anyone noticing, at least not when the theft is taking place. In contrast, a person who steals by using force, violence, or threats of force or violence would more likely be called a robber. Still, the word thief is used generally to refer to someone who steals. In this way, a robber is a kind of thief.Most instances of theft are crimes, but a person might still be called a thief if they’ve committed a theft that won’t get them arrested. You might call your sibling a thief when they steal a cookie from your plate, for example.Example: I don’t care that he only stole a few things—he stole them, and that makes him a thief.
Related Words
Thief, robber refer to one who steals. A thief takes the goods or property of another by stealth without the latter's knowledge: like a thief in the night. A robber trespasses upon the house, property, or person of another, and makes away with things of value, even at the cost of violence: A robber held up two women on the street.
Other Word Forms
- thievish adjective
- thievishly adverb
- thievishness noun
- underthief noun
Etymology
Origin of thief
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English thēof; cognate with Dutch dief, German Dieb, Old Norse thjōfr, Gothic thiufs
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They were unhappy, too; because in those days, being a sharecropper was just about as bad as being a hog thief.
From Literature
Now they’re just pests, pesky thieves trying to steal what little gold we find.
From Literature
Since the theft the museum has taken several emergency measures, including replacing the grille used by the thieves as Des Cars sought to focus on a major "Louvre -- New Renaissance" renovation of the site.
From Barron's
Her departure comes just months after thieves carried out a brazen heist that stunned officials and the art world.
I would pry them off with my fingers and eat them standing at the stove, like a tiny kitchen thief.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
