What does thief mean?
Definitions for thief
θifthief
This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word thief.
Princeton's WordNet
thief, stealernoun
a criminal who takes property belonging to someone else with the intention of keeping it or selling it
Wiktionary
thiefnoun
One who has carried out a theft
Etymology: From þeof, from þeubaz.
Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
THIEFnoun
Etymology: thiubs, Gothick; ðeif , Saxon; dief, Dutch.
Take heed, have open eye; for thieves do foot by night. William Shakespeare.
This he said because he was a thief, and had the bag. John.
Can you think I owe a thief my life,
Because he took it not by lawless force?
Am I obliged by that t’ assist his rapines,
And to maintain his murders? Dryden.Their burning lamps the storm ensuing show,
Th’ oil sparkles, thieves about the snuff do grow. May.
Wikipedia
thief
Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word theft is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as larceny, robbery, embezzlement, extortion, blackmail, or receiving stolen property. In some jurisdictions, theft is considered to be synonymous with larceny, while in others, theft is defined more narrowly. Someone who carries out an act of theft may be described as a "thief" (PL: thieves).Theft is the name of a statutory offence in California, Canada, England and Wales, Hong Kong, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, and the Australian states of South Australia and Victoria.
ChatGPT
thief
A thief is an individual who unlawfully steals or attempts to steal another person's property or belongings, typically in a secretive and deceitful manner, without the owner's consent and with the intention of permanently depriving the owner of the property.
Webster Dictionary
Thiefnoun
one who steals; one who commits theft or larceny. See Theft
Thiefnoun
a waster in the snuff of a candle
Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
Thief
thēf, n. one who steals or takes unlawfully what is not his own.—ns. Thief′-catch′er, -tā′ker, one whose business is to detect thieves and bring them to justice: a detective. [A.S. theóf; Ice. thjóf-r, Ger. dieb.]
Suggested Resources
thief
Song lyrics by thief -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by thief on the Lyrics.com website.
Matched Categories
British National Corpus
Nouns Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'thief' in Nouns Frequency: #2074
Usage in printed sourcesFrom:
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Anagrams for thief »
feith
Numerology
Chaldean Numerology
The numerical value of thief in Chaldean Numerology is: 5
Pythagorean Numerology
The numerical value of thief in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3
Examples of thief in a Sentence
"There is a greater prison than Kuje; it is the conscience of men. A President who was sponsored with stolen money by a thief, is in a greater prison with the thief. And it shall manifest soon". - Sen Shehu Sanni (APC Kaduna State).
Liar' is just as ugly a word as 'thief,' because it implies the presence of just as ugly a sin in one case as in the other. If a man lies under oath or procures the lie of another under oath, if he perjures himself or suborns perjury, he is guilty under the statute law.
Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind; the thief doth fear each bush an officer.
Thief who steals thief has one hundred years of pardon.
You stole a point from me and you are a thief.
Popularity rank by frequency of use
References
Translations for thief
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- السارقArabic
- zlodějCzech
- tyvDanish
- DiebGerman
- ŝtelistoEsperanto
- ladrónSpanish
- varasFinnish
- voleurFrench
- चुरा लेनेवालाHindi
- tolvajHungarian
- pencuriIndonesian
- ladroItalian
- גַנָבHebrew
- 泥棒Japanese
- furLatin
- diefDutch
- tyvNorwegian
- złodziejPolish
- ladraoPortuguese
- hoţRomanian
- ворRussian
- tjuvSwedish
- hırsızTurkish
- злодійUkrainian
- چورUrdu
- kẻ trộmVietnamese
- 贼Chinese
Get even more translations for thief »
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"thief." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 20 Mar. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/thief>.
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