burglary

[ bur-gluh-ree ]

/ ˈbɜr glə ri /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR burglary ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural bur·gla·ries. Criminal Law.

the felony of breaking into and entering the house of another at night with intent to steal, extended by statute to cover the breaking into and entering of any of various buildings, by night or day.

Nearby words

burglar alarm, burglarious, burglariously, burglarize, burglarproof, burglary, burgle, burgomaster, burgonet, burgoo, burgos

Origin of burglary

1150–1200; Middle English < Anglo-French burglarie; see burglar, -y³

Related formsan·ti·bur·gla·ry, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for burglary

The more accomplished students took classes in safe-cracking, burglary, blackmail, and confidence games.
Meet 'The Queen of Thieves' Marm Mandelbaum, New York City's First Mob Boss|J. North Conway|September 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Identified only as Darius, the teen has been arrested for burglary several times in recent weeks.
France Decries Attack That Left Roma Teen in a Coma|Lizzie Crocker|June 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They were arraigned in Manhattan criminal court on charges of burglary, reckless endangerment and jumping from a structure.
Hero or Criminal? James Brady, the WTC Ironworker Who Jumped Off the Building|Michael Daly|March 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Burglary, something he hated, seemed to be the only way to find evidence.
The Domestic Spying of Hoover’s FBI Is an Eerie Prequel to the NSA’s Snooping Today|Betty Medsger|March 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

It looked like Greg was trying to stop a burglary, and was killed in the ensuing confrontation.
Did Sexpot Schoolteacher Pamela Smart Hire Teens to Kill Her Husband?|Marlow Stern|January 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Somebody was in the bank—at two o'clock in the morning—with tools for burglary.
The Yukon Trail|William MacLeod Raine
In Somersetshire four men were hanged for rape and burglary.
History of England from the fall of Wolsey to the death of Elizabeth. Vol. III|James Anthony Froude
Supposing that a change in the law had placed, for instance, increased difficulties in the way of burglary.
The Task of Social Hygiene|Havelock Ellis
You said you thought those men surveying back of Stresch & Potter's the day before the burglary, were working for the railroad?
The Girls of Central High on Lake Luna|Gertrude W. Morrison
The fact was that the first he heard of the burglary was when the constable came to him and found him and all his family in bed.
State Trials, Political and Social|Various

British Dictionary definitions for burglary

burglary

/ (ˈbɜːɡlərɪ) /

noun plural -ries

English criminal law the crime of either entering a building as a trespasser with the intention of committing theft, rape, grievous bodily harm, or damage, or, having entered as a trespasser, of committing one or more of these offences

Derived Formsburglarious (bɜːˈɡlɛərɪəs), adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for burglary

burglary

c.1200, Anglo-Latin burglaria (see burglar).

burglary

noun, plural bur·gla·ries. Criminal Law.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of burglary

Examples from the Web for burglary

British Dictionary definitions for burglary

burglary

noun plural -ries

Word Origin and History for burglary

burglary