Adjacent Words

Larceny definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

L'ARCENY, n. [L. latrocinium.]
Theft; the act of taking and carrying away the goods or property of another feloniously. Larceny is of two kinds; simple larceny, or theft, not accompanied with any atrocious circumstance; and mixed or compound larceny, which includes in it the aggravation of taking from one's house or person, as in burglary or robbery. The stealing of any thing below the value of twelve pence, is called petty larceny; above that value, it is called grand larceny.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the act of taking something from someone unlawfully; "the thieving is awful at Kennedy International" [syn: larceny, theft, thievery, thieving, stealing]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural -nies) Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French larecin theft, from Latin latrocinium robbery, from latron-, latro mercenary soldier, probably from Greek *latr?n, from latron pay Date: 15th century the unlawful taking of personal property with intent to deprive the rightful owner of it permanently

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. -ies) the theft of personal property. Usage: In 1968 replaced as a statutory crime in English law by theft. Derivatives: larcener n. larcenist n. larcenous adj. Etymology: OF larcin f. L latrocinium f. latro robber, mercenary f. Gk latreus

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Larceny Lar"ce*ny, n.; pl. Larcenies. [F. larcin, OE. larrecin, L. latrocinium, fr. latro robber, mercenary, hired servant; cf. Gr. (?) hired servant. Cf. Latrociny.] (Law) The unlawful taking and carrying away of things personal with intent to deprive the right owner of the same; theft. Cf. Embezzlement. Grand larceny & Petit larceny are distinctions having reference to the nature or value of the property stolen. They are abolished in England. Mixed, or Compound, larceny, that which, under statute, includes in it the aggravation of a taking from a building or the person. Simple larceny, that which is not accompanied with any aggravating circumstances.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Larceny is the crime of stealing. (LEGAL) Haggerman now faces two to 20 years in prison on grand larceny charges. = theft

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Theft, stealing, pilfering, robbery, thievery.