Burglar

//ˈbɜːɡlə(ɹ)// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A person who breaks in to premises with the intent of committing theft.

    "The burglar made off with a large diamond from the museum."

  2. 2
    a thief who enters a building with intent to steal wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To commit burglary. ambitransitive

    "The latter, with another constable, remained to watch the burglared premises both back and front, […]"

Synonyms

All synonyms
burglarizercracksmandrawlatchhousebreakerintruderrobber

Example

More examples

"The burglar locked the couple in the basement."

Etymology

16th century, from Medieval Latin burglātor, British byform of burgātor (“burglar”), derived from burgō (“to commit burglary”), from Late Latin burgus (“fortified town”), itself probably from Frankish *burg (“fortress”), from Proto-Germanic *burgz, *burgiją (“borough, watch-tower”). The -l- in burglātor may have been inserted under influence from Latin latro (“thief”). The shortened English form may have arisen through confluence with Old French burgeor (“burglar”), itself from the same Latin source.

Related phrases

burglar alarmburglar barcat burglarcat-burglargin burglartime burglarturd burglarburglar alarmcat burglar

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.