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steal someone thunder

 - 9 dictionary results

steal

  [steel] ,verb, stole, sto⋅len, steal⋅ing, noun
Use steal someone thunder in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, esp. secretly or by force: A pickpocket stole his watch.
2. to appropriate (ideas, credit, words, etc.) without right or acknowledgment.
3. to take, get, or win insidiously, surreptitiously, subtly, or by chance: He stole my girlfriend.
4. to move, bring, convey, or put secretly or quietly; smuggle (usually fol. by away, from, in, into, etc.): They stole the bicycle into the bedroom to surprise the child.
5. 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.
6. Games. to gain (a point, advantage, etc.) by strategy, chance, or luck.
7. to gain or seize more than one's share of attention in, as by giving a superior performance: The comedian stole the show.
–verb (used without object)
8. to commit or practice theft.
9. to move, go, or come secretly, quietly, or unobserved: She stole out of the house at midnight.
10. to pass, happen, etc., imperceptibly, gently, or gradually: The years steal by.
11. Baseball. (of a base runner) to advance a base without the help of a walk or batted ball.
–noun
12. Informal. an act of stealing; theft.
13. Informal. the thing stolen; booty.
14. Informal. something acquired at a cost far below its real value; bargain: This dress is a steal at $40.
15. Baseball. the act of advancing a base by stealing.
—Idiom
16. steal someone's thunder, to appropriate or use another's idea, plan, words, etc.
Origin:
bef. 900; 1860–65 for def. 5; ME stelen, OE stelan; c. G stehlen, ON stela, Goth stilan

Related forms:
steal⋅a⋅ble, adjective
stealer, noun

thun⋅der

  [thuhn-der]
–noun
1. a loud, explosive, resounding noise produced by the explosive expansion of air heated by a lightning discharge.
2. any loud, resounding noise: the thunder of applause.
3. a threatening or startling utterance, denunciation, or the like.
–verb (used without object)
4. to give forth thunder (often used impersonally with it as the subject): It thundered last night.
5. to make a loud, resounding noise like thunder: The artillery thundered in the hills.
6. to utter loud or vehement denunciations, threats, or the like.
7. to speak in a very loud tone.
8. to move or go with a loud noise or violent action: The train thundered through the village.
–verb (used with object)
9. to strike, drive, inflict, give forth, etc., with loud noise or violent action.
—Idiom
10. steal someone's thunder,
a. to use for one's own purposes and without the knowledge or permission of the originator the inventions or ideas of another.
b. to ruin or detract from the effect of a performance, remark, etc., by anticipating it.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME thonder, thunder, OE thunor; c. D donder, G Donner; ON thōrr Thor, lit., thunder; (v.) ME thondren, OE thunrian, deriv. of the v.; akin to L tonāre to thunder

Related forms:
thun⋅der⋅er, noun
thun⋅der⋅less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Cultural Dictionary

thunder

The noise created when air rushes back into a region from which it has been expelled by the passage of lightning.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

steal 
O.E. stelan "to commit a theft" (class IV strong verb; past tense stæl, pp. stolen), from P.Gmc. *stelanan (cf. O.S. stelan, O.N., O.Fris. stela, Du. stelen, O.H.G. stelan, Ger. stehlen, Goth. stilan), of unknown origin. Most IE words for steal have roots in notions of "hide," "carry off," or "collect, heap up." Attested as a verb of stealthy motion from c.1300 (e.g. to steal away, c.1369); of glances, sighs, etc., from 1586. The noun meaning "a bargain" is Amer.Eng. colloquial attested by 1942; baseball sense of "a stolen base" is from 1867. To steal (someone) blind first recorded 1974.

thunder 
O.E. þunor, from P.Gmc. *thunraz (cf. O.N. þorr, O.Fris. thuner, M.Du. donre, Du. donder, O.H.G. donar, Ger. Donner "thunder"), from PIE *(s)tene- "to resound, thunder" (cf. Skt. tanayitnuh "thundering," Pers. tundar "thunder," L. tonare "to thunder"). Swed. tordön is lit. "Thor's din." The intrusive -d- is also found in Du. and Icelandic versions of the word. The verb is O.E. þunrian; fig. sense of "to speak loudly, threateningly, bombastically" is recorded from c.1340. Thunderbolt is from c.1440; thunderclap is from c.1386; thunderstruck is from 1613, originally fig.; the lit. sense always has been rare. Thunderhead "high-piled cloud" is recorded from 1861.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: steal
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: stole; sto·len; steal·ing
Etymology: Old English stelan
: to take or appropriate without right or consent and with intent to keep or make use of —see also ROBBERY, THEFT
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: steal
Pronunciation: 'stEl
Function: noun
: abnormal circulation characterized by deviation (as through collateral vessels or by backward flow)of blood to tissues where the normal flow of blood has been cut off by occlusion of an artery steal> steal>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

steal (stēl)
n.
The diversion of blood flow from its normal course.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Science Dictionary
thunder   (thŭn'dər)  Pronunciation Key 
The explosive noise that accompanies a stroke of lightning. Thunder is a series of sound waves produced by the rapid expansion of the air through which the lightning passes. Sound travels about 1 km in 3 seconds (about 1 mi in 5 seconds). The distance between an observer and a lightning flash can be calculated by counting the number of seconds between the flash and the thunder. See Note at lightning.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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