heist

1 of 2

verb

ˈhīst 

heisted; heisting; heists

transitive verb

1

chiefly dialectal : hoist

2

a

: to commit armed robbery on

b

: steal sense 1a

heist

2 of 2

noun

: armed robbery : holdup

also : theft

Synonyms

Verb

• steal

Noun

• theft

Examples of heist in a Sentence

Verb

a professional burglar was able to heist a box of jewelry from the safe in the closet

Noun

it was the largest jewelry heist in the city's history

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Nesbit scoffs at the proposal, citing the difficulties of heisting perhaps a metric tonne of nuclear material. —IEEE Spectrum, 18 June 2024

An unusual criminal ring focused entirely on heisting semi-trucks, trailers and dump trucks has been busted in Florida, resulting in $6 million worth of heavy equipment being found, according to investigators. —Mark Price, Miami Herald, 7 Apr. 2025

Noun

To pull off the ultimate heist in a world where trust is scarce, Halston must assemble an unlikely crew of fixers, including an expert in forgery, a merciless mob boss, and an eccentric fashion designer. —Ellise Shafer, Variety, 16 July 2025

An ingenious gang of master jewel thieves from Italy, known as ‘The School of Turin’, were eventually revealed to be behind the audacious heist. —Max Goldbart, Deadline, 16 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

variant of hoist entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

1865, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1930, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for heist

• diced
• feist
• iced
• lysed
• priced
• sliced
• spiced
• spliced
• triste
• antichrist
• overpriced
• poltergeist

Kids Definition

heist

noun

ˈhīst

: armed robbery

also : theft

Etymology

Noun

from a dialect variant of hoist "an act of hoisting"