shoplifter

English

Etymology

From shop +‎ lifter.

Pronunciation

  • Audio (Southern England):(file)

Noun

shoplifter (plural shoplifters)

  1. A person who shoplifts, one who steals from shops.
    Shoplifters will be prosecuted.
    • 1832, Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country, volume 6, page 478:
      The shoplifters are much less to be dreaded than the sneak, as they do not carry off cash, rarely any very valuable property […]
    • 1945, Jack Henry, What Price Crime?, page 92:
      Like their friends the "draggers," the "hoisters" or shoplifters are having a thin time these days, […]
    • 2007 October 28, Joe Queenan, “Consider the Toothpick”, in The New York Times‎[1]:
      […] just as the unchastised teenage shoplifter, mistaking society’s indulgence for applause, will evolve into a bloodthirsty hired killer, it is inevitable that the author of “The Pencil” will one day morph into the author of “The Toothpick.”

Synonyms

Translations

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