Synonyms of stealing

stealing 1 of 2

noun

as in robbery

the unlawful taking and carrying away of property without the consent of its owner

in those days the stealing of a horse was a very serious crime

Synonyms & Similar Words

• robbery
• theft
• larceny
• kidnapping
• thievery
• burglary
• pilfering
• smuggling
• embezzlement
• abduction
• embezzling
• misappropriation
• shoplifting
• graft
• hijacking
• plundering
• looting
• rustling
• pilferage
• housebreaking
• peculation
• misapplication
• petit larceny
• filching
• piracy
• petty larceny
• poaching
• pillage
• purloining
• carjacking
• spoliation
• rapine
• despoliation
• banditry
• shanghaiing
• despoilment
• black marketeering

stealing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of steal

1

as in swiping

to take (something) without right and with an intent to keep

the guy who tried to steal my car was sentenced to a year in jail

Synonyms & Similar Words

• swiping
• robbing
• pilfering
• grabbing
• snatching
• lifting
• filching
• thieving
• appropriating
• misappropriating
• purloining
• pocketing
• nicking
• pinching
• snitching
• hijacking
• hooking
• nipping
• boosting
• ripping off
• picking
• seizing
• taking
• heisting
• plundering
• running off with
• making off with
• looting
• making away with
• burglarizing
• pillaging
• walking off with
• sacking
• shoplifting
• knocking over
• poaching
• grasping
• kidnapping
• abducting
• rustling
• rifling
• nailing
• carjacking
• mooching
• collaring
• sponging
• spiriting
• shanghaiing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• buying
• purchasing
• giving
• presenting
• contributing
• donating
• bestowing
• handing over

2

as in sneaking

to move about in a sly or secret manner

the teenagers were able to steal past a security guard and enter the fairgrounds without paying admission

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sneaking
• lurking
• slipping
• sliding
• crawling
• slinking
• skulking
• shirking
• snaking
• creeping
• tiptoeing
• mooching
• mousing
• pussyfooting
• edging
• inching
• padding
• worming
• ghosting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of stealing

Noun

Blatant, in-your-face lying, cheating and stealing is the norm. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 16 Sep. 2026

The stealing of Native Americans and their homelands is not just a side story in the grand drama of American history. — Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2026

The victim later told police the woman had been fired from her company after being suspected of stealing, the warrant affidavit said. — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 14 Aug. 2026

This kind of stealing of consensus is hardly new to American politics, true enough. — Scott Montgomery, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Economic circumstances also contribute to the rise of stealing and fraud. — Devika Rao, TheWeek, 3 Aug. 2026

Appearances by the unrelenting (and scene-stealing) Frank Castle, the vigilante known as the Punisher, also demand a more accountable hero. — Ken Makin, Christian Science Monitor, 3 Aug. 2026

Nathaniel Pearson of Raytown was charged Tuesday with first degree assault, armed criminal action and attempted stealing of a motor vehicle, the prosecutor’s office said in a Wednesday news release. — Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 29 July 2026

Like the first book of the trilogy, this one unfolds entirely in dialogue—only instead of giving us a narrator whose hat was stolen, this story is narrated by the fish who did the stealing. — Casey Cep, New Yorker, 7 July 2026

Verb

With the Rays trailing 2-1 after Liam Hicks' RBI groundout in the fourth, Mesa was caught stealing third for the final out of the fifth with slugger Yandy Díaz at the plate. — ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026

Continue reading … DIRTY POLITICS — Antifa supporter charged with stealing GOP campaign signs in NY race to replace Stefanik. — FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026

Cofield was sentenced to 11 years in prison in January 2024 for stealing $11 million from a Hollywood billionaire while Cofield was incarcerated in Georgia’s Special Management Unit, designed to be the state’s most secure prison. — Danny Robbins, AJC.com, 23 Oct. 2026

Wood was vindicated three years later, when a league investigation revealed the Astros had been cheating in 2017, stealing signs from a television monitor next to the dugout and relaying them to batters by banging on trash cans. — Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026

The federal government successfully won the conviction of former Google engineer and Chinese national Linwei Ding for stealing trade secrets over a roughly year-long period without Google noticing. — Benjamin Guggenheim, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026

A week after ProPublica reported how organized crime is stealing food stamp benefits — aided by the government’s refusal to update benefit-card technology — the Department of Agriculture announced plans to adopt more secure cards with microchips. — Eli Hager, ProPublica, 23 Oct. 2026

The iPhone Duo hits shelves today, but reviewers’ complaints about slow Touch ID unlocking are stealing some of the spotlight. — Jibin Joseph, PC Magazine, 23 Oct. 2026

Sacramento County sheriff’s detectives arrested two men Tuesday suspected of stealing cash during an armed robbery in August at a North Highlands smoke shop. — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 16 Oct. 2026