petty theft
collocation in Englishmeaningsofpettyandtheft
These words are often used together. Click on the links below to explore the meanings. Or,see other collocations withtheft.
petty
adjective
uk/ˈpet.i/us/ˈpet̬.i/
not important and not worth giving ...
See more atpetty
theft
noun[C or U]
uk/θeft/us/θeft/
(the act of) dishonestly taking something that belongs to someone else and ...
See more attheft
(Definition ofpettyandtheftfrom theCambridge English Dictionary© Cambridge University Press)
Examplesofpetty theft
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
The crimes covered includedpettytheft, drunkenness, disorderly conduct, vagrancy, desertion and of course, domestic violence.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Both of these conflicts originated over relatively minor disputes over property or accusations ofpettytheft.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Another was to grow one's own foodstuffs and exchange them with other households, whilst yet another waspettytheft.
From theCambridge English Corpus
Even so, their two years had definite achievements : their radical egalitarian and open approach led to ' a decline inpettytheftand other misdemeanours ' (p. 56).
From theCambridge English Corpus
Even more than in other parts of the country, property offences predominated, particularlypettytheft, but also violent offences such as burglary and robbery.
From theCambridge English Corpus
The list of disorderly conduct (no. 18) included not onlypettytheftand wood-stealing but also a number of moral failings including pride and arrogance.
From theCambridge English Corpus
To finance his habit he took topettytheft.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
In the 10 pages of either-way offences, a merepettytheftoffence can hardly be found.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
It is no wonder thatpettytheftoften leads to more serious offences.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Of course, there is morepettytheftand housebreaking.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
They seek temporary excitement and turn to vandalism andpettytheft.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Rural villages suffer from vandalism andpettytheft.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
It is more like apettytheftfrom a sub-post office.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
Another chunk of crime is vandalism andpettytheft.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
The years pass and the child commits a first offence ofpettytheft.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
If the court had less business the turn-round of remand prisoners who are not charged withpettytheftwould be very much quicker.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
But, as with all crime, it leads to other crimes ofpettytheftand then to something worse.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
A person convicted of apettytheft, for example, might be given a sentence of three or perhaps six months imprisonment suspended for a period of two years.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
There is also the possibility that someone who was behaving perfectly well until he went to prison would find prison an extremely good borstal and training ground forpettytheft.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
Want to learn more?
Go to the definition ofpetty
Go to the definition oftheft
See other collocations withtheft