kleptomania
pronunciation
How to pronounce kleptomania in British English:
UK [ˌkleptəˈmeɪniə]
How to pronounce kleptomania in American English:
US [ˌkleptə'meɪnɪr]
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- Noun:
- an irresistible impulse to steal in the absence of any economic motive
Word Origin
- kleptomania (n.)
- 1830, formed from mania + Greek kleptes "thief," from kleptein "to steal, act secretly," from PIE *klep- "to steal," an extention of root *kel- (2) "to cover, conceal" (see cell; cognate with Latin clepere "to steal, listen secretly to," Old Prussian au-klipts "hidden," Old Church Slavonic poklopu "cover, wrapping," Gothic hlifan "to steal," hliftus "thief"). Much-derided 19c. as a fancy term for old-fashioned thievery and an opportunity for the privileged to claim a psychological motive for criminal misbehavior. There is a popular belief that some of the criminal laws under which the poor are rigorously punished are susceptible of remarkable elasticity when the peccadilloes of the rich are brought under judgment, and that there is some truth in the old adage which declares that "one man may steal a horse where another dare not look over the hedge." This unwholesome distrust is not likely to diminish if, in cases of criminal prosecutions where so-called respectable persons commit theft without sufficiently obvious motive for the act, they have their crime extenuated on the plea of kleptomania, as has recently occurred in several notable instances. ["Kleptomania," "The Lancet," Nov. 16, 1861]
Example
- 1. In recent months , murdoch his lieutenants have stepped up their war of words with google , accusing it of " kleptomania " and acting as a " parasite " for including news corp content in its google news pages .