thieve

/θiːv/ (bre, ipa) · [θˈiv] /θiːv/ (ame, ipa) · [θˈiv] /ˈthēv How to pronounce thieve (audio)/ (ame, mw)

thieve — verb

  • thievepresent simple I / you / we / they
  • thieves3rd person singular
  • thieving-ing form
  • thievedpast simple

1. to take things that belong to other people without permission, especially when t

1.動詞及物 / 不及物C1
釋義

to take things that belong to other people without permission, especially when talking generally about stealing

例句

Ayana and her cousin thieved from parked cars during the festival.

thieve from + place/person

Rafael was caught thieving phone chargers from the hostel kitchen.

thieve + object + from + place

同義詞
  • steal

    the normal everyday verb, much more common than 'thieve'

  • pilfer

    suggests secretly taking small things, often repeatedly

  • rob

    usually takes a person or place as its object and often suggests force

  • shoplift

    means stealing from a store

反義詞
  • return

    to give back something instead of keeping it

  • hand back

    to return something to the owner

文法句型

thieve

thieve + noun phrase

thieve + noun phrase + from + person/place

用法筆記

Can be used without an object to talk about stealing in general, or with an object to name what was taken. It is much less common than the everyday verb 'steal'.

常見錯誤

❌They thieved the bank last night.
✅They robbed the bank last night.
💡'thieve' is used for stealing in general or for the thing taken, while 'rob' is the normal verb for attacking a person or place.