smash-and-grab
adjective
chiefly British
—used to describe a robbery that is done by breaking a window of a car, store, etc., and stealing whatever can be taken quickly
a smash-and-grab robbery/thief
Examples of smash-and-grab in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In June of this year, the Chanel boutique on Avenue Montaigne was targeted by a smash-and-grab robbery that involved four suspects ramming their vehicle into the store in order to break the windows and steal merchandise.
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Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 8 Oct. 2024
The suffering is all around us — from open-air drug markets populated by addicts to an epidemic of smash-and-grab robberies that are closing small businesses and driving up costs for those who can stay open.
—Matt Mahan, The Mercury News, 21 Sep. 2024
Eleven people have been arrested so far in connection with a series of smash-and-grab thefts from gun stores in the Greater Cincinnati area.
—Cameron Knight, The Enquirer, 17 Sep. 2024
Security experts say the demand for private guards soared after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and has picked up again in the years since the 2020 outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic — buoyed by growing anxiety around smash-and-grab thefts and other crimes.
—Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for smash-and-grab 
Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 8 Oct. 2024
The suffering is all around us — from open-air drug markets populated by addicts to an epidemic of smash-and-grab robberies that are closing small businesses and driving up costs for those who can stay open.
—Matt Mahan, The Mercury News, 21 Sep. 2024
Eleven people have been arrested so far in connection with a series of smash-and-grab thefts from gun stores in the Greater Cincinnati area.
—Cameron Knight, The Enquirer, 17 Sep. 2024
Security experts say the demand for private guards soared after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and has picked up again in the years since the 2020 outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic — buoyed by growing anxiety around smash-and-grab thefts and other crimes.
—Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for smash-and-grab
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'smash-and-grab.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Smash-and-grab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/smash-and-grab. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.
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