pilfer
/ˈpɪlfər/ verb [I or T]Definition
› to steal things that are not worth much money, especially from the place where you work: He was caught pilfering stationery more than once.
› to steal money, ideas, information, etc. from an organization: They were charged with conspiracy to pilfer $600m from a major international conglomerate. U.S. officials claimed the plane's electronic surveillance equipment had been thoroughly examined and pilfered by their military.
pilferage noun [U] › Closed circuit TVs have helped reduce the levels of pilferage experienced by retailers. pilfering noun [U] › His pilfering of the fund landed him in prison and destroyed his political career. → See Note steal(Definition of pilfer verb from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary
© Cambridge University Press)
Our dictionaries
Browse the Thesaurus
Browse the Dictionary
Word of the Day
Blog
Read our blog about how the English language behaves.
New Words
Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.
