steal

[ steel ]

/ stil /

verb (used with object), stole, sto·len, steal·ing.

to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, especially secretly or by force: A pickpocket stole his watch.

to appropriate (ideas, credit, words, etc.) without right or acknowledgment.

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.

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.

Games. to gain (a point, advantage, etc.) by strategy, chance, or luck.

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), stole, sto·len, steal·ing.

to commit or practice theft.

to move, go, or come secretly, quietly, or unobserved: She stole out of the house at midnight.

to pass, happen, etc., imperceptibly, gently, or gradually: The years steal by.

Baseball. (of a base runner) to advance a base without the help of a walk or batted ball.

noun

Informal. an act of stealing; theft.

Informal. the thing stolen; booty.

Informal. something acquired at a cost far below its real value; bargain: This dress is a steal at $40.

Baseball. the act of advancing a base by stealing.

Idioms for steal

steal someone's thunder, to appropriate or use another's idea, plan, words, etc.

Origin of steal

before 900; 1860–65 for def 5; Middle English stelen, Old English stelan; cognate with German stehlen, Old Norse stela, Gothic stilan

historical usage of steal

Steal and its kindred words come from the Germanic root stel- “to rob, steal” (as in Gothic stilan, Old English, Old Frisian, Old High German stelan, German stehlen ); the root has no certain relatives outside Germanic.
The idea of secrecy and concealment is a natural association, as in the words derivative of stel-, such as the noun stealth (Middle English stelthe, stelth, from Germanic stēlithō ), and the verb stalk “to follow or observe secretly or cautiously.” One of the current senses of stalk “to follow or harass someone obsessively over a period of time” dates from the early 1980s.

OTHER WORDS FROM steal

steal·a·ble, adjective steal·er, noun non·steal·a·ble, adjective out·steal, verb (used with object), out·stole, out·sto·len, out·steal·ing.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH steal

burglarize mug rip off rob steal (see synonym study at rob) steal steel stele

Words nearby steal

steak au poivre, steak knife, steak set, steak tartare, steakhouse, steal, steal a march on, steal someone blind, steal someone's heart, steal someone's thunder, steal the show

Definition for steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

thunder

[ thuhn-der ]

/ ˈθʌn dər /

noun

a loud, explosive, resounding noise produced by the explosive expansion of air heated by a lightning discharge.

any loud, resounding noise: the thunder of applause.

a threatening or startling utterance, denunciation, or the like.

verb (used without object)

to give forth thunder (often used impersonally with it as the subject): It thundered last night.

to make a loud, resounding noise like thunder: The artillery thundered in the hills.

to utter loud or vehement denunciations, threats, or the like.

to speak in a very loud tone.

to move or go with a loud noise or violent action: The train thundered through the village.

verb (used with object)

to strike, drive, inflict, give forth, etc., with loud noise or violent action.

Origin of thunder

before 900; (noun) Middle English thonder, thunder, Old English thunor; cognate with Dutch donder, German Donner; Old Norse thōrr Thor, literally, thunder; (v.) Middle English thondren, Old English thunrian, derivative of the v.; akin to Latin tonāre to thunder

OTHER WORDS FROM thunder

thun·der·er, noun thun·der·less, adjective out·thun·der, verb (used with object)

British Dictionary definitions for steal someone's thunder (1 of 2)

thunder

/ (ˈθʌndə) /

noun

a loud cracking or deep rumbling noise caused by the rapid expansion of atmospheric gases which are suddenly heated by lightning

any loud booming sound

rare a violent threat or denunciation

steal someone's thunder to detract from the attention due to another by forestalling him or her

verb

to make (a loud sound) or utter (words) in a manner suggesting thunder

(intr; with it as subject) to be the case that thunder is being heard

(intr) to move fast and heavily the bus thundered downhill

(intr) to utter vehement threats or denunciation; rail

Derived forms of thunder

thunderer, noun thundery, adjective

Word Origin for thunder

Old English thunor; related to Old Saxon thunar, Old High German donar, Old Norse thōrr; see Thor, Thursday

British Dictionary definitions for steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

steal

/ (stiːl) /

verb steals, stealing, stole or stolen

to take (something) from someone, etc without permission or unlawfully, esp in a secret manner

(tr) to obtain surreptitiously

(tr) to appropriate (ideas, etc) without acknowledgment, as in plagiarism

to move or convey stealthily they stole along the corridor

(intr) to pass unnoticed the hours stole by

(tr) to win or gain by strategy or luck, as in various sports to steal a few yards

steal a march on to obtain an advantage over, esp by a secret or underhand measure

steal someone's thunder to detract from the attention due to another by forestalling him

steal the show to be looked upon as the most interesting, popular, etc, esp unexpectedly

noun informal

the act of stealing

something stolen or acquired easily or at little cost

Word Origin for steal

Old English stelan; related to Old Frisian, Old Norse stela Gothic stilan, German stehlen

Medical definitions for steal someone's thunder

steal

[ stēl ]

n.

The diversion of blood flow from its normal course.

Scientific definitions for steal someone's thunder

thunder

[ thŭn′dər ]

The explosive noise that accompanies a stroke of lightning. Thunder is a series of sound waves produced by the rapid expansion of the air through which the lightning passes. Sound travels about 1 km in 3 seconds (about 1 mi in 5 seconds). The distance between an observer and a lightning flash can be calculated by counting the number of seconds between the flash and the thunder. See Note at lightning.

Cultural definitions for steal someone's thunder (1 of 2)

steal someone's thunder

To upstage someone; to destroy the effect of what someone does or says by doing or saying the same thing first: “The Republicans stole the Democrats' thunder by including the most popular provisions of the Democratic proposal in their own bill.”

Cultural definitions for steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

thunder

The noise created when air rushes back into a region from which it has been expelled by the passage of lightning.

Idioms and Phrases with steal someone's thunder (1 of 2)

steal someone's thunder

Use or appropriate another's idea, especially to one's advantage, as in It was Harold's idea but they stole his thunder and turned it into a massive advertising campaign without giving him credit. This idiom comes from an actual incident in which playwright and critic John Dennis (1657–1734) devised a “thunder machine” (by rattling a sheet of tin backstage) for his play, Appius and Virginia (1709), and a few days later discovered the same device being used in a performance of Macbeth, whereupon he declared, “They steal my thunder.”

Idioms and Phrases with steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

thunder

see under steal someone's thunder.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

steal

verb (used with object), stole, sto·len, steal·ing.

verb (used without object), stole, sto·len, steal·ing.

noun

Idioms for steal

Origin of steal

historical usage of steal

OTHER WORDS FROM steal

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH steal

Words nearby steal

Definition for steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

Origin of thunder

OTHER WORDS FROM thunder

British Dictionary definitions for steal someone's thunder (1 of 2)

noun

verb

Derived forms of thunder

Word Origin for thunder

British Dictionary definitions for steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

verb steals, stealing, stole or stolen

noun informal

Word Origin for steal

Medical definitions for steal someone's thunder

n.

Scientific definitions for steal someone's thunder

Cultural definitions for steal someone's thunder (1 of 2)

Cultural definitions for steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)

Idioms and Phrases with steal someone's thunder (1 of 2)

Idioms and Phrases with steal someone's thunder (2 of 2)