as in thief
a person who illegally enters a building in order to steal things; a person who commits burglary
The burglar had broken into several homes in the neighborhood.
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Recent Examples of burglar
Three burglars stole collectibles including Pokémon cards and damaged an Anaheim store earlier this week — resulting in an estimated $180,000 in losses, a manager of the business said.
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Sydney Barragan, Oc Register, 21 Feb. 2026
Shops in Gardena, Simi Valley and Huntington Beach have all been hit by burglars bypassing cash registers and going straight for the cards.
—Cierra Morgan, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
For consumers, the benefit is clear: Constant or near-constant surveillance that can catch burglars in the act and provide clarity on anything that happens outside their homes.
—Kevin Collier, NBC news, 12 Feb. 2026
But leaving your porch light on isn't always enough to deter more determined burglars.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for burglar
Sydney Barragan, Oc Register, 21 Feb. 2026
Shops in Gardena, Simi Valley and Huntington Beach have all been hit by burglars bypassing cash registers and going straight for the cards.
—Cierra Morgan, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
For consumers, the benefit is clear: Constant or near-constant surveillance that can catch burglars in the act and provide clarity on anything that happens outside their homes.
—Kevin Collier, NBC news, 12 Feb. 2026
But leaving your porch light on isn't always enough to deter more determined burglars.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 6 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for burglar
Recent Examples of Synonyms for burglar
Noun
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The alleged thieves ripped bronze plaques and grave markers from headstones and walls of the cemetery's mausoleum.—
Dean Fioresi,
CBS News,
18 Mar. 2026
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The city of Los Angeles is about to raise property tax bills because thieves and vandals won’t stop ransacking the city’s infrastructure to steal copper wire.—
Susan Shelley,
Daily News,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Many South African farms are ringed in barbed wire and outfitted with security cameras; one of the migrants told me a story about confronting armed robbers.—
Boyce Upholt,
New Yorker,
14 Mar. 2026
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The result — from the tunnels carved out by tomb robbers to the trains that run day and night — is a cinematic gift for the senses and specifically, to paraphrase one of the more philosophical characters, about our understanding of time’s ability to both preserve and destroy.—
Robert Abele,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Burglar.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/burglar. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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