Filch
/fɪltʃ/verb
To steal something, especially something small or not very valuable.
He filched a candy bar from the store.
Usage tips
Informal
Colloquial
verb
To steal something, especially something small or not very valuable.
He filched a candy bar from the store.
Usage tips
Informal
Colloquial
Definition 1 of 1
Pro Tip 1/3Colloquial Usage
Filch is usually used in casual or informal speech rather than in formal writing.
Lisa filched some fries off my plate when I wasn't looking.
Pro Tip 2/3Petty Theft
Use 'filch' for small, often insignificant acts of theft, not for grand or serious thefts.
I caught my brother trying to filch a few dollars from my wallet.
Pro Tip 3/3Slight Negative Connotation
While 'filch' implies wrongdoing, it's often perceived as less serious or malicious than stronger theft terms.
I wouldn't trust him; he has a habit of filching office supplies.
Compare with
lootpilferpurloinsnatchstealthief
Never forget "Filch"
Humans forget easily. That's why you should download WordUp: Smart reminders, word games, AI practice, and much more!
Quote examples
Christopher Robin Milne
English Businessman
In pessimistic moments, when I was trudging London in search of an employer wanting to make use of such talents as I could offer, it seemed to me, almost, that my father had got to where he was by climbing upon my infant shoulders, that he had filched from me my good name and had left me with nothing but the empty fame of being his son.
Quote examples
Rachel Simmons
American Author
What teens share online is dwarfed by what they consume. Pre-Internet, you had to hoof it to the grocery store to find a magazine with celebrity bodies - or at least filch your mother's copy from the bathroom. Now the pictures are as endless as they are available.
Quote examples
Virginia Woolf
British Author
Let a man get up and say, Behold, this is the truth, and instantly I perceive a sandy cat filching a piece of fish in the background. Look, you have forgotten the cat, I say.
Quote examples
Christopher Robin Milne
English Businessman
In pessimistic moments, when I was trudging London in search of an employer wanting to make use of such talents as I could offer, it seemed to me, almost, that my father had got to where he was by climbing upon my infant shoulders, that he had filched from me my good name and had left me with nothing but the empty fame of being his son.
Quote examples
Rachel Simmons
American Author
What teens share online is dwarfed by what they consume. Pre-Internet, you had to hoof it to the grocery store to find a magazine with celebrity bodies - or at least filch your mother's copy from the bathroom. Now the pictures are as endless as they are available.
Quote examples
Virginia Woolf
British Author
Let a man get up and say, Behold, this is the truth, and instantly I perceive a sandy cat filching a piece of fish in the background. Look, you have forgotten the cat, I say.
Example 1 of 3
WordUp Chrome Extension
As you browse the web instantly look up words you don’t know.
Get Chrome Extension