stealing

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
steal/stiːl/

▶verb (past stole; past part. stolen)

• 1 take (something) without permission or legal right and without intending to return it.

  ■ dishonestly pass off (another person's ideas) as one's own.

• 2 give or take surreptitiously or without permission: I stole a look at my watch.

  ■ move somewhere quietly or surreptitiously.

• 3 (in various sports) gain (an advantage, a run, or possession of the ball) unexpectedly or by exploiting the temporary distraction of an opponent.

  ■ Baseball run to (a base) while the pitcher is in the act of delivery.

▶noun

• 1 informal a bargain.

• 2 chiefly N. Amer. an act of stealing.

  ■ an idea taken from another work.

  ■ Baseball an act of stealing a base.

– phrases
steal a march on gain an advantage over by taking early action.
steal someone's heart win someone's love.
steal the show attract the most attention and praise.
steal someone's thunder win praise or attention for oneself by pre-empting someone else's attempt to impress.

– derivatives
stealer noun.

– origin OE stelan (v.), of Gmc origin.