heist

[ hahyst ]

noun

1. a robbery or holdup:

   Four men were involved in the armored car heist.

verb (used with object)

1. to take unlawfully, especially in a robbery or holdup; steal:

   to heist a million dollars' worth of jewels.

2. to rob or hold up.

heist

/ haɪst /

noun

1. a robbery

verb

1. tr to steal or burgle

Derived Forms

• ˈheister, noun

Other Words From

• heister noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of heist¹

1925–30, Americanism; alteration of hoist

Word History and Origins

Origin of heist¹

variant of hoist

Example Sentences

The score roils with melodic drama in the film’s prologue, which vibrantly depicts a tense heist to steal the titular piano under the cover of darkness and a Fourth of July fireworks show in Mississippi.

From Los Angeles Times

During a brazen Valentine’s Day heist of an armored truck in Hawthorne, the robber kept his face covered.

From Los Angeles Times

The heist was the inspiration for a 2008 film, The Bank Job.

From BBC

“There are few places to offload them,” says Jamie Montgomery, who runs the Somerset farm that was targeted in the 1998 heist.

From BBC

Thursday’s episode featured a black-tie bash at an exclusive jewelry store where Elsbeth goes face-to-face with glamorous Vanessa Williams, who stars in a killer guest spot that centers on a heist gone wrong.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• break in
• caper
• holdup
• larceny
• theft