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Steal   /stil/   Listen
verb
Steal  v. t.  (past stole; past part. stolen; pres. part. stealing)  
1.
To take, and carry away, feloniously; to take without right or leave, and with intent to keep wrongfully; as, to steal the personal goods of another. "Maugre thy heed, thou must for indigence Or steal, or beg, or borrow, thy dispense." "The man who stole a goose and gave away the giblets in alms."
2.
To withdraw or convey clandestinely (reflexive); hence, to creep furtively, or to insinuate. "They could insinuate and steal themselves under the same by their humble carriage and submission." "He will steal himself into a man's favor."
3.
To gain by insinuating arts or covert means. "So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel."
4.
To get into one's power gradually and by imperceptible degrees; to take possession of by a gradual and imperceptible appropriation; with away. "Variety of objects has a tendency to steal away the mind from its steady pursuit of any subject."
5.
To accomplish in a concealed or unobserved manner; to try to carry out secretly; as, to steal a look. "Always, when thou changest thine opinion or course, profess it plainly,... and do not think to steal it."
To steal a march, to march in a covert way; to gain an advantage unobserved; formerly followed by of, but now by on or upon, and sometimes by over; as, to steal a march upon one's political rivals. "She yesterday wanted to steal a march of poor Liddy." "Fifty thousand men can not easily steal a march over the sea."
Synonyms: To filch; pilfer; purloin; thieve.


Steal  v. i.  (past stole; past part. stolen; pres. part. stealing)  
1.
To practice, or be guilty of, theft; to commit larceny or theft. "Thou shalt not steal."
2.
To withdraw, or pass privily; to slip in, along, or away, unperceived; to go or come furtively. "Fixed of mind to avoid further entreaty, and to fly all company, one night she stole away." "From whom you now must steal, and take no leave." "A soft and solemn breathing sound Rose like a steam of rich, distilled perfumes, And stole upon the air."


noun
Stale  n.  (Written also steal, stele, etc)  The stock or handle of anything; as, the stale of a rake. "But seeing the arrow's stale without, and that the head did go No further than it might be seen."


Steal  n.  A handle; a stale, or stele. (Archaic or Prov. Eng.) "And in his hand a huge poleax did bear. Whose steale was iron-studded but not long."





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Steal" Quotes from Famous Books



... ne'er approached the throne Since Pharaoh's reign, nor so defiled a crown. I' the sacred ear tyrannic arts they croak, Pervert his mind, his good intentions choke; Tell him of golden Indies, fairy lands, Leviathan, and absolute commands. Thus, fairy-like, the King they steal away, And in his room a Lewis changeling lay. How oft have I him to himself restored. In's left the scale, in 's right hand placed the sword? Taught him their use, what dangers would ensue To those that tried to separate these two? The bloody Scottish chronicle turned o'er, Showed him how ...
— Andrew Marvell • Augustine Birrell
... tremendous was the restraint imposed upon their nerves. A crime so huge, so daring as the abduction of a Princess, the actual invasion of a castle to commit the theft of a human being just as an ordinary burglar would steal in and make way with the contents of a silver chest, was beyond their power ...
— Graustark • George Barr McCutcheon
... horse-stealing is one thing. The horse-stealer may be impressed, convicted, made penitent, and return the stolen horse. But not until his heart is imbued with a spiritual conception of honesty, as the law of God, will he steal a stray horse no more. Hence the first questions in reform are not: How many groggeries are there in my parish? How many corrupt polls? How many hypocrites on my church-roll? The question is: How is my parish society in enmity to the highest ...
— The Warriors • Lindsay, Anna Robertson Brown
... criminal code. Three of these bills passed into law. The first of these was to repeal the act by which private stealing in shops, to the amount of forty shillings, was made punishable with death; the penalty, however, was still retained against those who should so steal to the amount of ten pounds and upwards; by which it would appear that our legislators conceived that a man's life was not equal in value to such an amount. The second went to repeal certain acts which denounced death to any ...
— The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.III. - From George III. to Victoria • E. Farr and E. H. Nolan
... looked up for a moment as Frank stopped to watch the game. Their eyes met. The Frenchman permitted a sneer to steal across his face, while Frank looked at him steadily till his ...
— Frank Merriwell's Nobility - The Tragedy of the Ocean Tramp • Burt L. Standish (AKA Gilbert Patten)


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