pickpockets

noun

plural of pickpocket
as in thieves
a person who steals money and other things from people's pockets and purses

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pickpockets Need to Know A police chief and travel agent on Tiktok says to only carry a crossbody bag on vacation in order to avoid becoming a target for pickpockets. — Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 29 Sep. 2026 After a close call with pickpockets in Italy, my mom upgraded her backpack to this crossbody bag. — Brooke Knappenberger, PEOPLE, 12 Sep. 2026 One such ruse, revealed by The Athletic in August 2024, involved a team of pickpockets being hired to teach his squad the importance of being ready, alert and prepared at all times. — Art De Roché, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026 Think of it like a team of pickpockets, one of which walks up to ask you for directions while the other swipes your wallet. — Alan Henry, PC Magazine, 10 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pickpockets
  1. thieves
  2. robbers
  3. swindlers
  4. racketeers
  5. vandals
  6. gangsters
  7. hoodlums
  8. ruffians
Noun
  • The thieves also damaged the main office building with copper wiring and components removed from rooftop systems and air conditioning units, police said.
    — Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Europol has warned of an increase in museum robberies, with gold objects proving particularly attractive to thieves.
    — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of thieves
Noun
  • In Tokyo and Osaka, there are Chinese gangsters, Brazilian robbers, and even a gang of thieves from Serbia and Montenegro called the Pink Panthers.
    — Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The robbers were under the impression that the warehouse held foreign currency but instead found 6,800 candy-bar-sized gold ingots alongside diamonds, travelers checks, and precious metals.
    — Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of robbers
Noun
  • The decade ended tumultuously, with the Osmond family’s fortune drained by a series of swindlers and grifters.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 21 Apr. 2026
  • This scam, according to Kent, could be proliferated with the use of AI, which can allow swindlers to enroll in many different college programs at once.
    — Peter D'Abrosca, FOXNews.com, 21 Jan. 2026
Definition of swindlers
Noun
  • Of course, entrusting waste management to gangsters and racketeers has repercussions.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 July 2026
  • The characters were based on a real family of bookmakers and racketeers who once lived in England.
    — Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 5 Mar. 2026
Definition of racketeers
Noun
  • Trump has claimed the pool was destroyed by vandals, but the report apparently makes no mention of any vandalism.
    — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The administration initially blamed the pool’s problems on vandals, and several people, including former Olympian David Hearn, were arrested and charged with felonies and misdemeanors.
    — Maura Judkis, Washington Post, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of vandals
Noun
  • For decades, Hollywood actor Danny Trejo’s bread and butter was playing gangsters, prison inmates and other assorted criminals.
    — Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The world of gangsters and rappers loomed large over the trial.
    — Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of gangsters
Noun
  • His warning was meant for American eyes and ears at least as much — if not more so — than for the government in Jerusalem that until now has encouraged the hoodlums by tolerating their violence.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 11 Sep. 2026
  • In the past decade, the leadership of the Kinahan organization has become rich and cosmopolitan, and their life styles have started to resemble those of international businessmen more than of street hoodlums.
    — Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026
Definition of hoodlums
Noun
  • But as with any good Leonard story, the best moments come from the characters, a rogues’ gallery of violent ruffians and neurotic, duplicitous scoundrels.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The series has lent a cinematic gangster attraction to the Peaky Blinders, yet the term itself was not one gang — as depicted in the show — but a generic expression from the late 19th century for the ‘street ruffians’ of Birmingham, born out of the city’s ring of poverty.
    — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2026
Definition of ruffians

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Cite this Entry

“Pickpockets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pickpockets. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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