burglarize

American

[bur-gluh-rahyz] / ˈbɜr gləˌraɪz /

especially British, burglarise

verb (used with object)

burglarized, burglarizing

to break into and steal from.

Thieves burglarized the warehouse.

verb (used without object)

burglarized, burglarizing

to commit burglary.

burglarize British

/ ˈbɜːɡləˌraɪz /

verb

(tr) to break into (a place) and steal from (someone); burgle

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

unburglarized adjective

Etymology

Origin of burglarize

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; burglar + -ize

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“Not robbing someone with a gun, not burglarizing something with a gun. An unarmed shoplifter is dead now.”

From Washington Post

Mr. Loeb had been burglarizing cars when he took the bag from Mr. Burke’s vehicle.

From New York Times

A group of undocumented migrants in camouflage clothing burglarized a ranch house in Texas and attempted to evade arrest, authorities said Monday.

From Fox News

Border agents in the Big Bend Sector responded to the ranch house in Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth County, that had reportedly been burglarized and encountered three armed undocumented migrants, U.S.

From Fox News

A business executive killed inside his Bethesda, Md., home last week was shot several times by a fired employee who had planned to burglarize the property, according to police allegations filed in court Tuesday.

From Washington Post

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023