Thievery is the act or practice of stealing. When someone commits thievery, they take things that belong to other people without permission. A person caught in an act of thievery might have shoplifted candy from a store, taken money from someone's wallet, or stolen a bicycle left unlocked outside school.

The word sounds old-fashioned because it is: people have been using it for centuries to describe the crime of taking what isn't yours. You might see it in historical novels about pirates and their thievery on the high seas, or in stories about clever thieves planning elaborate robberies. Today, we often use simpler words like “stealing” or “theft” in everyday conversation, but thievery carries a slightly more serious or dramatic tone.

Thievery involves dishonesty and breaks trust between people. Communities work to prevent thievery through locks, security systems, and laws that set consequences for thieves.