steal
Americanverb (used with object)
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steals,
present (3rd person singular)
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stole,
past
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stolen,
past participle
-
stealing
present participle
-
to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, especially secretly or by force.
A pickpocket stole his watch.
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to appropriate (ideas, credit, words, etc.) without right or acknowledgment.
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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.
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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.
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Games. to gain (a point, advantage, etc.) by strategy, chance, or luck.
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to gain or seize more than one's share of attention in, as by giving a superior performance.
The comedian stole the show.
verb (used without object)
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steals,
present (3rd person singular)
-
stole,
past
-
stolen,
past participle
-
stealing
present participle
-
to commit or practice theft.
-
to move, go, or come secretly, quietly, or unobserved.
She stole out of the house at midnight.
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to pass, happen, etc., imperceptibly, gently, or gradually.
The years steal by.
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Baseball. (of a base runner) to advance a base without the help of a walk or batted ball.
noun
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steals
plural
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Informal. an act of stealing; theft.
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Informal. the thing stolen; booty.
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Informal. something acquired at a cost far below its real value; bargain.
This dress is a steal at $40.
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Baseball. the act of advancing a base by stealing.
idioms
verb
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to take (something) from someone, etc without permission or unlawfully, esp in a secret manner
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(tr) to obtain surreptitiously
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(tr) to appropriate (ideas, etc) without acknowledgment, as in plagiarism
-
to move or convey stealthily
they stole along the corridor
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(intr) to pass unnoticed
the hours stole by
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(tr) to win or gain by strategy or luck, as in various sports
to steal a few yards
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to obtain an advantage over, esp by a secret or underhand measure
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to detract from the attention due to another by forestalling him
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to be looked upon as the most interesting, popular, etc, esp unexpectedly
noun
-
the act of stealing
-
something stolen or acquired easily or at little cost
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stealsimple
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stealssimple
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have stolenperfect
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has stolenperfect
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am stealingprogressive
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are stealingprogressive
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is stealingprogressive
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have been stealingperfect progressive
-
has been stealingperfect progressive
Past
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stolesimple
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had stolenperfect
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was stealingprogressive
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were stealingprogressive
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had been stealingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of steal
First recorded before 900; 1860–65 steal for def. 5; Middle English stelen, Old English stelan; cognate with German stehlen, Old Norse stela, Gothic stilan
Explanation
To steal is take something that isn't yours: thieves steal. But a bargain that's so good it's almost like you're getting away with robbery is also called a steal. Stealing is what thieves do: taking things from other people. A bank robber steals money. A mugger steals purses and wallets. People also use steal in other ways. If someone wastes your time, you might say they're stealing your time. A store having a sale might say, "Our prices are a steal!" In baseball, a runner can steal a base. When you see steal, think "take."
Vocabulary lists containing steal
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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:
A steal by Luka Doncic with 1:44 remaining fueled the streak and the star point guard threw an outlet pass to Carr in transition, who collected the ball for an emphatic two-handed dunk.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2026
He said modern AI is like "a key that would allow you to steal every car that you could see."
From Barron's ● Nov. 11, 2026
But he’s proving this year that he’s still a steal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026
It takes a big performance to steal the limelight away from the blockbusting Mele Hufanga in the Kiwis back-line but cross-code star Stacey Waaka did just that with an impressive display.
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
The words slam into me, steal my breath, carve themselves into my brain so I don’t forget.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
The author highlights a memorable sequence in “Purple Noon” in which Delon’s character steals another man’s clothing and impersonates him in the mirror.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2026
Their defense instead relies on blocks and steals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2026
The Lakers are tied for third in the NBA with 10.7 steals per game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2026
"Friedreich ataxia is a devastating rare genetic disease that progressively steals a child's ability to walk, speak, play, and ultimately survive," she says.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026
"The boy is my namesake,'did you know that? Robert Arryn. I am sworn to protect him. How can I do that if his mother steals him away?"
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
One copycat AI video stole her joke about asking out a personal trainer -- a bit she once delivered on popular TV host Jimmy Fallon's show.
From Barron's ● Nov. 11, 2026
The Presley.plaintiffs claim the Massachusetts-based AI company stole “Elvis’ likeness and copyrights,” while Eight Mile Style says Suno disregarded “the rights of Eight Mile Style” by making unlicensed copies of its songs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 9, 2026
“This is what they stole from us,” Musk captioned the computer-generated photo of his sci-fi fan fiction.
From Salon ● Nov. 3, 2026
Binance earlier said it held $5 billion of the $6.3 billion it was fronting in the same cryptocurrencies that hackers stole, and was purchasing the remaining $1.3 billion of cryptocurrency through market channels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026
“Do you think Conor stole Jason’s glove?” he asked.
From "The Missing Mitt (The Hardy Boys: Secret Files, #2)" by Franklin W. Dixon
“All of the humanity, history, despair, and triumph that constitutes Elvis’ identity was stolen and is stored on servers and harnessed by Suno to make massive amounts of money,” the Presley complaint said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 9, 2026
North Korea, whose state-backed hacking groups have been behind most of the largest crypto heists, has a track record of using THORChain to convert stolen assets into currencies like bitcoin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2026
OTW says it does not believe the user database, which holds usernames, email addresses and encrypted passwords, was stolen, but cannot rule it out.
From Barron's ● Nov. 7, 2026
But close to $3 billion of the stolen funds still remain in control of the hackers, according to blockchain tracing firms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2026
“You never believed that I’d stolen anything. You totally had my back.”
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
The jury took seven hours to reach their verdict and decided he was motivated by personal gain - stealing tens of thousands of pounds from the taxpayer.
From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026
We’re intruders, stealing glimpses of a private domestic drama not meant for our prying eyes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
But that doesn’t mean that people don’t care about somebody stealing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026
The FBI on Saturday accused North Korea of stealing more than $6 billion in virtual assets from the cryptocurrency exchange Binance in what is thought to be the biggest-ever crypto heist.
From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026
“Pixies got me in trouble. They were stealing in the store.”
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
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