burglar

noun

bur·​glar ˈbər-glər 

also -gə-lər

: one who commits burglary

Examples of burglar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s a lot of other activities that happened between summer of ’71 and June of ’72, but the Watergate burglars, the Plumbers, are caught at the Watergate Hotel. — Dustin Desoto, Vox, 30 Oct. 2026

Last October, burglars made off with roughly $100 million in jewels from the Louvre in a daring daylight robbery. — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 29 Oct. 2026

For example, the 60-year-old burglar who's already done three of his five years might prove as much. — Arkansas Online, 27 Oct. 2026

Video footage from inside Kala Greek showed one of the burglars kicking the glass to break in. — Tara Molina, CBS News, 27 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Anglo-French burgler, from Medieval Latin burglator, probably alteration of burgator, from burgare to commit burglary

First Known Use

1541, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing burglar

• anti-burglar
• burglar alarm
• cat burglar

Kids Definition

burglar

noun

bur·​glar ˈbər-glər 

: a person who commits burglary

Legal Definition

burglar

noun

bur·​glar ˈbər-glər 

: a person who commits a burglary