Added 9 October 2026
theft
/θɛft/ noun
In Latin: furtum Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about theft at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
Origin
From Middle English theft, thefte, þefte, þefþe, þiefþe, Old English þīefþ, from Proto-West Germanic *þiubīþu, from Proto-Germanic *þiubīþō (“theft”), from *þiubijaną (“to thieve, steal”), equivalent to thieve + -t (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with West Frisian tsjeafte (“theft”), dialectal Dutch diefte (“theft”), obsolete German Diebde (“theft”), Icelandic þýfð (“theft”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)