voleuse

Voleuse is the feminine noun in French for a person who steals. The masculine form is voleur. In ordinary usage, voleuse refers to a female thief and can denote a shoplifter, a burglar, or any person who commits theft, depending on context. The term is common in both everyday speech and formal writing, including news reports and literature.

Etymology and morphology: Voleuse comes from the verb voler, meaning to steal, and the noun vol meaning theft; the feminine suffix -euse marks gender. The plural is voleuses.

Usage and examples: In crime reporting, une voleuse identifies a woman who has committed theft; in fiction it can emphasize gender. The phrase voleuse à la tire denotes a professional pickpocket who snatches from passersby. The word can carry pejorative connotations in plain usage, but in dictionaries it remains the neutral descriptor of a thief.

See also: voleur, vol, voler.