Wiktionary

thief

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Middle English thef, theef, þef, from Old English þēof, from Proto-West Germanic *þeub, from Proto-Germanic *þeubaz. Spelling from Northern England, where /eːo/ became [iə] rather than [eː]. (Compare the spelling of deep from Old English deop.)

Pronunciation

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Noun

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thief (plural thieves)

  1. One who carries out a theft.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:thief
  2. One who steals another person's property, especially by stealth and without using force or violence.
  3. (obsolete) A waster in the snuff of a candle.
    • 1640, Joseph Hall, Divine Light:
      But hear you, my Worthy Brethren: do not you, where you see a thief in the candle, call presently for an extinguisher […]

Hypernyms

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Hyponyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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Anagrams

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Middle English

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Noun

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thief

  1. (Gower) Alternative form of thef

Scots

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Etymology

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Inherited from Middle Scots theif, thef, from Middle English thef, from Old English þēof, from Proto-West Germanic *þeub, from Proto-Germanic *þeubaz.

Noun

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thief (plural thiefs or thieves)

  1. A thief (one who steals, especially stealthily).
    • 1983, William Lorimer, transl., The New Testament in Scots, Edinburgh: Canongate, published 2001, →ISBN, →OCLC, John 10:10, page 179:
      "The thíef comesna for ocht but tae steal an fell an destroy: I am come at they may hae life—ay, an rowth, an mair o it!"
      "The thief doesn't come except to steal, kill, and destroy: I have come so they can have life abundantly, and more of it!"
  2. A criminal or villain; a malicious or lawbreaking person.
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