steal
[steel]
- to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, especially secretly or by force: A pickpocket stole his watch.
- to appropriate (ideas, credit, words, etc.) without right or acknowledgment.
- to take, get, or win insidiously, surreptitiously, subtly, or by chance: He stole my girlfriend.
- to move, bring, convey, or put secretly or quietly; smuggle (usually followed by away, from, in, into, etc.): They stole the bicycle into the bedroom to surprise the child.
- Baseball. (of a base runner) to gain (a base) without the help of a walk or batted ball, as by running to it during the delivery of a pitch.
- Games. to gain (a point, advantage, etc.) by strategy, chance, or luck.
- to gain or seize more than one's share of attention in, as by giving a superior performance: The comedian stole the show.
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- to commit or practice theft.
- to move, go, or come secretly, quietly, or unobserved: She stole out of the house at midnight.
- to pass, happen, etc., imperceptibly, gently, or gradually: The years steal by.
- Baseball. (of a base runner) to advance a base without the help of a walk or batted ball.
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- Informal. an act of stealing; theft.
- Informal. the thing stolen; booty.
- Informal. something acquired at a cost far below its real value; bargain: This dress is a steal at $40.
- Baseball. the act of advancing a base by stealing.
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- steal someone's thunder, to appropriate or use another's idea, plan, words, etc.
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Origin of steal
before 900; 1860–65 for def 5; Middle English stelen, Old English stelan; cognate with German stehlen, Old Norse stela, Gothic stilan
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for steal
Contemporary Examples
In “Steal This Episode,” the filmmaker denounces Homer Simpson as an “enemy of art.”
Here’s the Lost Judd Apatow ‘Simpsons’ Episode, Penned by Judd ApatowAsawin Suebsaeng
January 6, 2015
When they steal things, they want to get all the bonus points.
Watch your back Liam Neeson, here comes Kevin Costner to steal your older-leading-man thunder!
The Biggest Bombs of 2014: ‘Sex Tape,’ Mariah Carey’s Vocals, ‘How I Met Your Mother’ and MoreKevin Fallon
December 19, 2014
Murderers tweet in Mexico; a history of Kansas City and did Picasso try to steal the Mona Lisa?
7 Must-Read Stories about Mexican Cartels, Kansas City and Picasso: The Best of The BeastWilliam Boot
October 25, 2014
And I am able to steal back what was stolen from me as a child.
Historical Examples
If I cannot find one, I will earn, beg or steal the money to get them printed.
Ballads of a BohemianRobert W. Service
I steal into his sleep, and play my part among the figures of his dreams.
Other Tales and SketchesNathaniel Hawthorne
It never occurred to her that the girl might have been tempted to steal—and had not resisted the temptation.
Within the LawMarvin Dana
There are hundreds of them who steal because they don't get enough to eat.
Within the LawMarvin Dana
Sleep did not steal upon the sisters at one and the same time.
The Wives of The DeadNathaniel Hawthorne
steal
- to take (something) from someone, etc without permission or unlawfully, esp in a secret manner
- (tr) to obtain surreptitiously
- (tr) to appropriate (ideas, etc) without acknowledgment, as in plagiarism
- to move or convey stealthilythey stole along the corridor
- (intr) to pass unnoticedthe hours stole by
- (tr) to win or gain by strategy or luck, as in various sportsto steal a few yards
- steal a march on to obtain an advantage over, esp by a secret or underhand measure
- steal someone's thunder to detract from the attention due to another by forestalling him
- steal the show to be looked upon as the most interesting, popular, etc, esp unexpectedly
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- the act of stealing
- something stolen or acquired easily or at little cost
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Word Origin
Old English stelan; related to Old Frisian, Old Norse stela Gothic stilan, German stehlen
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 steal
v.
Old English stelan "to commit a theft" (class IV strong verb; past tense stæl, past participle stolen), from Proto-Germanic *stelanan (cf. Old Saxon stelan, Old Norse, Old Frisian stela, Dutch stelen, Old High German stelan, German stehlen, Gothic stilan), of unknown origin.
Most IE words for steal have roots in notions of "hide," "carry off," or "collect, heap up." Attested as a verb of stealthy motion from c.1300 (e.g. to steal away, late 14c.); of glances, sighs, etc., from 1580s. To steal (someone) blind first recorded 1974.
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n.
"a bargain," by 1942, American English colloquial, from steal (v.). Baseball sense of "a stolen base" is from 1867.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
steal
(stēl)- The diversion of blood flow from its normal course.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.