plural thieves
ˈthēvz 
: one that steals especially stealthily or secretly
also
: one who commits theft or larceny
Examples of thief in a Sentence
A thief took my purse.
a thief has been stealing wallets and valuables from the lockers at the gym
Recent Examples on the Web
In 1975, a 16-year-old house cleaner named Maricarmen falls in love with Rey el Cantante, a strong-willed musician and petty thief beloved by the barrio locals.
—
Shannon Carlin, Time, 29 Aug. 2025
But those of us who have tracked the IRGC’s overseas activities through the years recognized the playbook: The militia works with a decentralized network of criminal actors, including drug cartels and crime syndicates, as well as petty thieves here and there.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2025
All the burglaries, police now believe, were the work of an international crime ring that employed South American thieves to target dozens of homes of wealthy families in America’s Heartland.
—Bebe Hodges, The Enquirer, 25 Aug. 2025
All will recite it, the loose tobacco seller, the flour thief,
and those who own
a loaf of bread
or an empty bullet
and a donkey with a broken cart.
—Nima Hasan
august 15, Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for thief
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Shannon Carlin, Time, 29 Aug. 2025
But those of us who have tracked the IRGC’s overseas activities through the years recognized the playbook: The militia works with a decentralized network of criminal actors, including drug cartels and crime syndicates, as well as petty thieves here and there.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2025
All the burglaries, police now believe, were the work of an international crime ring that employed South American thieves to target dozens of homes of wealthy families in America’s Heartland.
—Bebe Hodges, The Enquirer, 25 Aug. 2025
All will recite it, the loose tobacco seller, the flour thief,
and those who own
a loaf of bread
or an empty bullet
and a donkey with a broken cart.
—Nima Hasan
august 15, Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for thief
Cite this Entry
“Thief.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thief. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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