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petty larceny

American  

noun

Law.
  1. larceny in which the value of the goods taken is below a certain legally specified amount.


petty larceny British  

noun

  1. a variant spelling of petit larceny

"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

Etymology

Origin of petty larceny

First recorded in 1810–20

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:

"From a landlord’s perspective, from storeowner’s perspective, we’re terrified of this, his policies and what not. Armed robbery of a store is now a petty larceny? What insanity is this?" he said.

From Fox News Feb. 14, 2022

In full disclosure, he has some semi-recent unpleasant “history” to deal with, but the worst of this was pleaded down to petty larceny, and he is starting anew.

From Seattle Times Sep. 29, 2019

The 1868 Florida Constitution disenfranchised felons and included petty larceny among the crimes that counted as felonies.

From New York Times Sep. 26, 2018

The charges: petty larceny for stealing a shirt and tie, lent to Morgan by the owner of the town’s tavern, which Morgan had failed to return.

From Slate May 15, 2015

Red Tie shifts his attention back to the petty larceny.

From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon

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