burgle

verb

bur·​gle ˈbər-gəl 

burgled; burgling ˈbər-g(ə-)liŋ  ; burgles

transitive verb

: to break into and steal from (a home, business, etc.) : burglarize

One area resident tells Newsweek her house had been burgled a few years ago while she and her husband were inside.

—Jeff Stein

intransitive verb

: to commit robbery

Clearly, the more often a man … burgles, the more likely he is to get caught.

—The Economist

While the law is a disincentive, the main reason most of us don't kill, punch or burgle is that we think it's wrong and consequently prefer not to.

—David Mitchell

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a difference between burglarize and rob?

To burglarize is "to break into and enter of a building with the intent to commit a crime, often theft," whereas rob means " to take personal property from by violence or threat." Burglary need not entail violence or threat, and robbery need not entail breaking into a dwelling.

Is the verb form of burglary, burgle or burglarize?

The verb form of burglary can be either burglarize or burgle. "Burglarize," like many verb forms, is made by adding the suffix -ize, and this form is more common in American English. Burgle is a back-formation (a word formed by subtraction of a real or supposed affix from an already existing longer word), and is more common in British English. Both are widely accepted as correct.

Is burglarized a real word?

Yes, it is, and so is burgle. While both variants of the verb, burgle and burglarize, have been disparaged since they entered the language in the middle of the 19th century, both are real words, and both have come to be widely accepted.

Synonyms

• break in
• burglarize

Examples of burgle in a Sentence

someone burgled the lab when no one was there and let the animals out of their cages

the neighbors returned from vacation to find that their house had been burgled

Recent Examples on the Web

He was incensed, mistakenly believing that the notepads had been burgled from his barn. —Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024

Nobody, a box office hit in 2021, followed Hutch Mansell (Odenkirk), a docile family man who slowly reveals his true character after his house gets burgled, leading him into a bloody war with a Russian crime boss. —Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 31 July 2024

Grant told Barry his flat was burgled, microphones were put in his window boxes and dropped into his car, and medical records of him and the mothers of his children were stolen from NHS databases. —Lily Ford, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 July 2024

Grief Is for People $27 Bookshop.org Over the course of a few short months, Sloane Crosley’s apartment was burgled and her best friend died. —Chloe Schama, Vogue, 18 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from burglar

First Known Use

1867, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

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Legal Definition

burgle

transitive verb

bur·​gle ˈbər-gəl 

burgled; burgling

: burglarize