grand larceny


nounLaw.
  1. larceny in which the value of the goods taken is above a certain legally specified amount.

Origin of grand larceny

1
First recorded in 1840–50
  • Also called grand theft.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use grand larceny in a sentence

  • Mr. Hadden is now serving out a term of ten years imprisonment in the New Jersey Penitentiary, for grand larceny.

  • Their misrepresentations as to the money value of glasses amounts to grand larceny.

  • The Boss tried to tell her how there wa'n't any grand larceny intended, but it was no go.

    Shorty McCabe | Sewell Ford
  • I know places where they'd indict you for grand larceny if you took much more than you have here.

    The Mucker | Edgar Rice Burroughs
  • No, me for where you can carry off things that are too big for the grand larceny statutes.

    Yellowstone Nights | Herbert Quick

British Dictionary definitions for grand larceny

grand larceny

noun
  1. (formerly in England) the theft of property valued at over 12 pence. Abolished in 1827

  2. (in some states of the US) the theft of property of which the value is above a specified figure, varying from state to state but usually being between $25 and $60

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012