Thieve
/θiːv/noun
To steal something, especially habitually or secretly.
Did you know?In Old English, the verb þeofian was built from the noun þeof, meaning “thief,” so “to thieve” literally began as “to act like a thief.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*þeubijaną
“To steal; the reconstructed Germanic verb associated with theft”
Old English
Old English
þēofian
“To steal or rob”
Old English
Old English
þēof
“A thief; the noun from which the verb was formed”
Middle English
Middle English
theven
“To steal”
14th–15th Century
English
thieve
“To steal, often repeatedly or secretly”
Modern English
English
thieve
“To steal, especially habitually or secretly”