<p><strong>Verb</strong></p><ul><li>(used with object)<ul><li>to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, especially secretly or by force: A pickpocket stole his watch.</li><li>to appropriate (ideas, credit, words, etc.) without right or acknowledgment.</li><li>to take, get, or win insidiously, surreptitiously, subtly, or by chance: He stole my girlfriend.</li><li>to move, bring, convey, or put secretly or quietly; smuggle (usually followed by away, from, in, into, etc.): They stole the bicycle into the bedroom to surprise the child.</li><li>Baseball: (of a base runner) to gain (a base) without the help of a walk or batted ball, as by running to it during the delivery of a pitch.</li><li>Games: to gain (a point, advantage, etc.) by strategy, chance, or luck.</li><li>to gain or seize more than one's share of attention in, as by giving a superior performance: The comedian stole the show.</li></ul></li><li>(used without object)<ul><li>to commit or practice theft.</li><li>to move, go, or come secretly, quietly, or unobserved: She stole out of the house at midnight.</li><li>to pass, happen, etc., imperceptibly, gently, or gradually: The years steal by.</li><li>Baseball: (of a base runner) to advance a base without the help of a walk or batted ball.</li></ul></li></ul><p><strong>Noun</strong></p><ul><li>Informal:<ul><li>an act of stealing; theft.</li><li>the thing stolen; booty.</li><li>something acquired at a cost far below its real value; bargain: This dress is a steal at $40.</li><li>Baseball: the act of advancing a base by stealing.</li></ul></li></ul>