Difference between 'stolen' and 'robbed'.

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What is the difference between 'steal' and 'rob'.

To me, 'rob' is used when force is used. E.g. He was robbed at knifepoint.

He left his cellphone on the table and went to the restroom. When he returned, his watch was gone. In this case, I would use "His watch was stolen".

Am I correct in my understanding of the two words?

Thanks.

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Type: Question • Score: 31 • Views: 34,911 • Replies: 48
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View best answer, chosen by tanguatlay

@tanguatlay,

Stealing makes reference to the item (stolen) while robbing makes reference to the person: Paul was robbed last week and his watch was stolen.

1 Reply

@tanguatlay,

I wouldn't qualify it like that, I would say something is stolen a person is robbed. A person's innocence or identity can be stolen, or a person can be robbed of their innocence or possessions . A store/house can be robbed, but it can't be stolen or taken away.

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hey joe what you doin with that gun in your hand?

shootin jimi in the foot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mBjG9chIFw

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@tanguatlay,

Robbery requires force or the threat of force. Stealing refer to theft of property, which may or may not involve the use of force -- it is the unlawful taking of property without consent. A robber steals property when he takes it from you by using force, a burglar steals property when he breaks into your house and takes your property, and a thief steals property when he takes your watch from the table.

2 Replies

@Ticomaya,

Ticomaya wrote:

Robbery requires force or the threat of force. Stealing refer to theft of property, which may or may not involve the use of force -- it is the unlawful taking of property without consent. A robber steals property when he takes it from you by using force, a burglar steals property when he breaks into your house and takes your property, and a thief steals property when he takes your watch from the table.

A great deal depends on the context. Certainly in a legal context, in most English speaking jurisdictions, robbery is a distinct kind of theft in which property is taken using threats and/or actual violence, but I can say without committing an error things like "When somebody falsely accuses me of something, they rob me of my good reputation."

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@tanguatlay,

What if the robber stole into the night?

1 Reply

@fobvius,

What if the robber stole a stole?

http://ny-image1.etsy.com/il_570xN.123779365.jpg

1 Reply

@Francis,

Fobvius and Francis are making me confused rather than helping me.

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@tanguatlay,

A robber can steal a stole ( kind a small mantle to put on the shoulders, usually furry but not always).

2 Replies

@Francis,

Francis wrote:

A robber can steal a stole ( kind a small mantle to put on the shoulders, usually furry but not always).

Thanks, Francis, for the clarification.

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@Francis,

That stole was so cheap, it was a steal.

1 Reply

@McTag,

Yeah, but a steal with style, still..

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@tanguatlay,

Quote:

What if the robber stole into the night?

We use 'steal/steal away' like this to illustrate that someone secretly or in a sneaky fashion moved in to the cover of darkness.

Here's a song by Robbie Dupree called Steal Away and two YouTube links. The lyrics are below the links.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kw2XywbTm2E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJxebSv7pLM

Steal Away

by Robbie Dupree

C'mon and hold me
Just like you told me
Then show me
What I want to know
Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Into the night
I know it ain't right
Don't tease me
Why don't you please me
Then show me
What you came here for
Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Into the night
I know it ain't right
Into the night, baby
Make it tonight
Oooh
I caught you glancin' my way
And I know what you're after
(No second chances tonight)
Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Into the night
I know it ain't right
Into the night
I know it ain't right
Why don't we steal away
I know it ain't right
Into the night, babe
Why don't we steal away
Make it tonight
Why don't we steal away

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@Ticomaya,

Ticomaya wrote:

Robbery requires force or the threat of force. Stealing refer to theft of property, which may or may not involve the use of force -- it is the unlawful taking of property without consent. A robber steals property when he takes it from you by using force, a burglar steals property when he breaks into your house and takes your property, and a thief steals property when he takes your watch from the table.

Note - Ticomaya is giving you a legal definition. One thing with words from law is that we often also use them in common, ordinary parlance -- and they don't necessarily have the same meanings. After all, in the law, burglary is a taking from a home, dwelling or location, whereas in common slang we might say that someone who had property stolen from them on the streets (e. g. away from a building) was a burglary victim. The slang is, actually, an incorrect usage of the term, but it is a common usage.

2 Replies

@jespah,

Quote:

we might say that someone who had property stolen from them on the streets (e. g. away from a building) was a burglary victim

Careful with that "we", there.

And Tico would probably call them a burglarisation victim.

Smile

1 Reply

@McTag,

Sorry, burglarization.

1 Reply

@McTag,

McTag wrote:

Sorry, burglarization.

I hope you were being facetious about "burglarisation" and also the -isation / -ization thing?

1 Reply

@jespah,

Quote:

One thing with words from law is that we often also use them in common, ordinary parlance -- and they don't necessarily have the same meanings.

Tico gave a strict legal definition and in that sense, he misled.

The law has strict definitions because it requires strict definitions. The law deals with things literal, whereas everyday speech often deals with things in a figurative sense.

As we have seen, everyday language doesn't need those same restrictions, nor do we want them. Using a word in a different fashion from a specialized area of language doesn't make one use slang, or incorrect. We could say that the specific uses that the law makes are legal jargon, no pejorative sense intended.

Lawyers don't adhere to the strict meanings found in the law when they operate on a day to day basis. They would sound like idiots.

Quote:

robbed rob·bing
Definition of ROB

transitive verb
1
a (1) : to take something away from by force : steal from (2) : to take personal property from by violence or threat
b (1) : to remove valuables without right from (a place) (2) : to take the contents of (a receptacle)
c : to take away as loot : steal <rob jewelry>
2
a : to deprive of something due, expected, or desired
b : to withhold unjustly or injuriously

Usage Discussion of ROB

Sense vt 1c, in which the direct object is the thing stolen, is sometimes considered to be wrong, or perhaps archaic. The sense has been in use since the 13th century and is found in earlier literature <contrive to rob the honey and subvert the hive — John Dryden>. It is still in use though not as common as other senses <then robbed $100 after the clerk fled — Springfield (Massachusetts) Morning Union>.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rob

If we were to hold to strict legal definitions, number 2, above,

2
a : to deprive of something due, expected, or desired
b : to withhold unjustly or injuriously

would not be possible. Many a hockey/soccer/basketball player has been robbed by a goalie/another player with no threat of violence at all. These are not slang uses. They are, as Jespah noted, words used in different areas that don't have the same, rather than meanings, maybe nuances would be a more apt description.

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@contrex,

I was, yes.

1 Reply

Difference between 'stolen' and 'robbed'.

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