pickpocket
Americannoun
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pickpockets
plural
verb (used with object)
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to steal (a wallet, money, etc.) in the manner of a pickpocket.
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to steal from (a person) in the manner of a pickpocket.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pickpocket
Explanation
A pickpocket is a criminal who steals things from people's pockets or bags. Your grandmother might warn you to be on the lookout for pickpockets when you travel to Paris. Pickpockets take advantage of crowded situations to slide wallets, phones, and cash out of victims' pockets, and when they do this, you can say that they pickpocket. Probably the most famous literary pickpocket is Charles Dickens' character The Artful Dodger, from "Oliver Twist." Before pickpocket was coined, around 1590, they were called pick-purses, for obvious reasons.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
For 23-year-old Lucas Leach, who plays pickpocket Gabriel, returning to school to film Crookhaven was a cathartic experience.
From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2026
And so, I always equate it to a pickpocket.
From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2025
She passes like a ponytailed Pistol Pete Maravich and she has the sticky fingers of a subway pickpocket.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 29, 2023
TCU: The Horned Frogs disrupted the Longhorns with quick hands and pickpocket steals that turned into early points.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 11, 2023
And if not, then could Harry’s death have been more than just an awful coincidence, the result of a foolish choice to pickpocket the wrong man?
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
Success in each was measured by a made cut, modest lodgings and avoiding pickpockets on trains.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 4, 2026
He even hired professional pickpockets to attend a team dinner to take phones and wallets from players, to teach them to stay alert.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
The area has been targeted by pickpockets, and Rome officials have debated different ways of regulating access for years.
From Barron's ● Dec. 19, 2025
This time when Nancy asked, all nine pickpockets sprung back as though they had just realized they were standing on the third rail.
From New York Times ● May 1, 2023
In the six months of the fair the Columbian Guard made only 2,929 arrests, about sixteen per day, typically for disorderly conduct, petty theft, and pickpocketing, with pickpockets most favoring the fair’s always-crowded aquarium.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
