thief
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thief
(thēf)n. pl. thieves (thēvz)
One who commits the act or crime of theft.
[Middle English, from Old English thēof.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
thief
(θiːf)n, pl thieves (θiːvz)
1. a person who steals something from another
2. (Law) criminal law a person who commits theft
[Old English thēof; related to Old Frisian thiāf, Old Saxon thiof, Old High German diob, Old Norse thjōfr, Gothic thiufs]
ˈthievish adj
ˈthievishly adv
ˈthievishness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
thief
(θif)n., pl. thieves.
a person who steals, esp. secretly.
[before 900; Middle English; Old English thēof, c. Old Frisian thiāf, Old Saxon thiof, Old High German thiob, Old Norse thjōfr, Gothic thiufs]
syn: 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: An armed robber held up the store owner.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
thief
- jilt - A female accomplice to a thief.
- furtive - Someone who is furtive literally "carries things away like a thief."
- ferret - Its name comes from Latin furritus, "little thief"—alluding to the animal's affinity for stealing hens' eggs.
- thief - Has the underlying meaning of "crouching, furtive person."
Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.
thief
– robber – burglarAnyone that steals can be called a thief. A robber often uses violence or the threat of violence to steal things from places such as banks or shops.
They caught the armed robber who raided a supermarket.
A burglar breaks into houses or other buildings and steals things.
The average burglar spends just two minutes inside your house.
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  thief - a criminal who takes property belonging to someone else with the intention of keeping it or selling itburglar - a thief who enters a building with intent to steal criminal, crook, felon, malefactor, outlaw - someone who has committed a crime or has been legally convicted of a crime body snatcher, ghoul, graverobber - someone who takes bodies from graves and sells them for anatomical dissection graverobber - someone who steals valuables from graves or crypts holdup man, stickup man - an armed thief cutpurse, pickpocket, dip - a thief who steals from the pockets or purses of others in public places literary pirate, pirate, plagiariser, plagiarist, plagiarizer - someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own despoiler, freebooter, looter, pillager, plunderer, raider, spoiler - someone who takes spoils or plunder (as in war) robber - a thief who steals from someone by threatening violence cattle thief, rustler - someone who steals livestock (especially cattle) snatcher - a thief who grabs and runs; "a purse snatcher" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
thief
noun robber, crook (informal), burglar, stealer, bandit, plunderer, mugger (informal), shoplifter, embezzler, pickpocket, pilferer, swindler, purloiner, housebreaker, footpad (archaic), cracksman (slang), larcenist The thieves snatched the camera.
Quotations
"Thieves respect property. They merely wish the property to become their property that they may more perfectly respect it" [G.K. Chesterton The Man who was Thursday]
"Thieves respect property. They merely wish the property to become their property that they may more perfectly respect it" [G.K. Chesterton The Man who was Thursday]
Proverbs
"Set a thief to catch a thief"
"Set a thief to catch a thief"
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
thief
nounA person who steals:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
TranslationsSelect a language:
Spanish / Español
thief
[θiːf] N (thieves (pl)) [θiːvz] → ladrón/ona m/fstop thief! → ¡al ladrón!
you have to set a thief to catch a thief → no hay como un ladrón para atrapar a otro
see also thick A7
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
thief
(θiːv) – plural thieves (θiːvs) – noun a person who steals. The thief got away with all my money.ladrón
thieve (θiːf) verb to steal. He is always thieving my pencils.robar
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
thief
→ ladrónMultilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009