Word: steal Part of Speech: verb Etymology: Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *stelaną Proto-West Germanic *stelan Old English stelan Middle English stelen English steal Inherited from Middle English stelen, from Old English stelan, from Proto-West Germanic *stelan, from Proto-Germanic *stelaną. Cognate with Bavarian stöhn (“to steal”), Dutch stelen (“to steal”), German and Low German stehlen (“to steal”), Luxembourgish stielen (“to steal”), Danish stjæle (“to steal”), Faroese stjala (“to steal”), Icelandic stela (“to steal”), Norwegian Bokmål stjele (“to steal”), Norwegian Nynorsk stela, stele (“to steal”), Swedish stjäla (“to steal”), Gothic 𐍃𐍄𐌹𐌻𐌰𐌽 (stilan, “to steal”). For the meaning development compare with Russian красть (krastʹ, “to steal”) and Russian кра́сться (krástʹsja, “to stalk, to prowl, to slink”). etymology notes Proposed etymologies beyond Germanic are numerous and include * Proto-Indo-European *ster-: compare Welsh herw (“theft, raid”), Ancient Greek στερέω (steréō, “to deprive of”) * Proto-Indo-European *stel(H)- (“to stretch”): compare Albanian pë/mbështjell (“to confuse, mess up, mix, wrap up”), Old Church Slavonic стєлѭ (steljǫ, “I spread out (bed, roof)”), Ancient Greek τηλία (tēlía, “playing table”) * Proto-Indo-European *tsel- (“to sneak”): compare Sanskrit त्सरति (tsárati, “creep, sneak up on”) and other forms under Pokorny 5. *sel- "schleichen, kriechen" Pronunciation: /stiːl/ 1. To take illegally, or without the owner's permission, something owned by someone else without intending to return it. Labels: transitive Example: Three irreplaceable paintings were stolen from the gallery. Example: The problem is the two bicycles stolen from us. 2. To appropriate without giving credit or acknowledgement. Labels: transitive, usually Example: They stole my idea for a biodegradable, disposable garbage de-odorizer. 3. To get or effect surreptitiously or artfully. Labels: transitive Example: He stole glances at the pretty woman across the street. Example: Variety of objects has a tendency to steal away the mind too often from its steady pursuit of any subject. 4. To acquire at a low price. Labels: figuratively, informal, transitive Example: He stole the car for two thousand less than its book value. Example: He got that car for two grand under book? Wow, he stole that thing! 5. To draw attention unexpectedly in (an entertainment), especially by being the outstanding performer. Usually used in the phrase steal the show. Labels: transitive 6. To move silently or secretly; to pass unnoticed. Labels: intransitive Example: He stole across the room, trying not to wake her. Example: Dawn was stealing over the mountaintops. 7. To convey (something) clandestinely. Labels: transitive Example: The fact that European Cuckoos steal their eggs into the nests of other birds has been generally known for more than a thousand years. 8. To withdraw or convey (oneself) clandestinely. Example: They could insinuate and steal themselves under the same by their humble carriage and submission. Example: He will steal himself into a man's favour. 9. To advance safely to (another base) during the delivery of a pitch, without the aid of a hit, walk, passed ball, wild pitch, or defensive indifference. Labels: transitive 10. To dispossess. Labels: transitive Example: However, until Gardner stole the ball from Dean Whitehead in the centre circle with the half-hour approaching, setting off on a run which culminated with a testing long-range shot - with debutant Obafemi Martins lurking, Begovic gathered at the second time of asking - Stoke looked the more credible contenders to break the deadlock. 11. To borrow for a short moment. Labels: excessive, informal, transitive Example: Can I steal your pen? 12. To take or retell someone else’s joke; to use a clever phrase or expression from someone else in one's own speaking or writing. Labels: humorous, informal, transitive