theft

noun

ˈtheft 

1

a

: the act of stealing

specifically : the felonious taking and removing of personal property with intent to deprive the rightful owner of it

b

: an unlawful taking (as by embezzlement or burglary) of property

2

: a stolen base in baseball

3

obsolete : something stolen

Synonyms

• larceny
• robbery
• stealing
• thievery

Examples of theft in a Sentence

The theft of the jewelry and other valuables was immediately reported to the police.

He was found guilty of theft.

Recent Examples on the Web

Antoine Massey, 32, faces charges of domestic abuse involving strangulation, theft of a motor vehicle and a parole violation. —Anders Hagstrom , Nate Foy , Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 25 May 2025

This is in large part due to rampant theft of familiar old-school icons; items like My Computer, Calculator, Minesweeper, Search, and more look like they were taken directly from a classic Microsoft tile set. —John Timmer, ArsTechnica, 23 May 2025

As president, Ramaphosa was also tripped up by a scandal involving the theft of more than $500,000 in cash stuffed into a sofa on his farm, which led to a corruption probe. —Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA Today, 23 May 2025

Polis said in his veto letter that the 2024 bill would unfairly punish those who didn’t directly engage in wage theft. —Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 23 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English thiefthe, from Old English thīefth; akin to Old English thēof thief

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing theft

• anti-theft
• grand theft
• identity theft
• petit theft
• petty theft

Rhymes for theft

• cleft
• deft
• heft
• left
• bereft

Kids Definition

theft

noun

ˈtheft 

: the act of stealing

Legal Definition

theft

noun

: larceny

broadly : a criminal taking of the property or services of another without consent

Note: Theft commonly encompasses by statute a variety of forms of stealing formerly treated as distinct crimes.

— grand theft

: theft of property or services whose value exceeds a specified amount or of a specified kind of property (as an automobile)

Note: Grand theft is a felony.

— identity theft

: the unauthorized use of another's means of identification (as name or social security number) for the purpose of committing theft or another crime

— petty theft

: theft of property or services whose value is below a specified amount

called also petit theft

Note: Petty theft is a misdemeanor but may be aggravated by prior convictions.

Etymology

Old English thiefth