theft

English

Etymology

From Middle English thefte, thiefthe, theofthe, thiufthe, from Old English þīfþ, þȳfþ, þēoft, earlier þīefþ, þēofþ (“act of thieving; theft”), from Proto-Germanic *þiubiþō, from *þeubaz (“thief”), equivalent to thief +‎ -th or thieve +‎ -th. Cognate with Old Frisian thiuvethe, thiufthe (“theft”), Old Norse þýfð, þýft, and (obsolete) Dutch diefte.

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /θɛft/
  • Rhymes: -ɛft

Noun

theft (plural thefts)

  1. The act of stealing property.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

Further reading

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