Unit 3 - 3A · Face2Face Upper Intermediate Vocabulary List

an unlawful act that is punishable by the legal system

"Stealing is a serious crime."

"The police are investigating a serious crime that happened downtown last night."

the illegal act of taking something from a place or person without permission

"The theft happened last night."

"The theft of confidential documents caused major problems for the company."

the crime of entering a building to commit illegal activities such as stealing, damaging property, etc.

"Burglary happens when someone breaks in."

"Burglary is the unlawful entry into a building or other premises with the deliberate intent to commit an offence inside"

the act of threatening someone or beating them in order to gain some money

"Street mugging happened."

"Street mugging happens frequently in some parts of the city at night unfortunately."

the crime of taking goods from a store without paying for them

"Shoplifting is theft."

"Shoplifting hurts stores and often leads to legal trouble."

the act of importing or exporting goods or people secretly and against the law

"Smuggling goods is a crime."

"The police arrested the gang for smuggling illegal drugs across the border hidden inside trucks."

the act of taking someone against their will and imprisoning them

"Child kidnapping solved."

"The police solved the child kidnapping case and rescued the boy safely after three days of hard work."

the act of offering money to an authority to gain advantage

"The mayor was convicted of bribery and corruption."

"Bribery of a foreign public official is a criminal offense under the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention"

the criminal act of setting something on fire, particularly a building

"Arson destroyed the old factory."

"Arson is the criminal act of deliberately setting fire to property"

the illegal act of purposefully damaging a property belonging to another person or organization

"The park has been ruined by senseless vandalism."

"Vandalism of a cultural site is considered a serious criminal offense in many countries"

the act of stealing goods or property from a place, especially during a time of chaos or disorder

"Looting breaks out after the earthquake."

"The police arrested several individuals involved in looting during the civil unrest."

the act of using violence such as killing people, bombing, etc. to gain political power

"Terrorism hurts many innocent people."

"The government is working hard to stop terrorism and protect citizens from violent attacks."

the crime of stealing money or goods from someone or somewhere, especially by violence or threat

"He was sentenced for armed bank robbery."

"The convenience store was closed for several hours after an armed robbery took place there."

a person who steals from someone or something using force or threat of violence

"The robber wears a mask over his face."

"The robber wore a mask and gloves but left fingerprints on the counter."

someone who steals something from a person or place without using violence or threats

"The thief escaped."

"The thief was caught on security camera but his face was covered by a hood making identification difficult for the police investigation."

to take something from someone or somewhere without permission or paying for it

"Do not steal from other people."

"The employee was fired after trying to steal money from the cash register when he thought no one was watching him."

someone who illegally enters a place in order to steal something

"The burglar enters through the unlocked window."

"The burglar enters through the unlocked window and steals jewelry from the bedroom dresser."

to illegally enter a place in order to commit theft

"Someone burgled their house last week."

"The criminals managed to burgle the house while the family was away on their summer vacation."

a person who attacks and robs people in a public place

"The mugger took her bag."

"A mugger is a criminal who commits robbery by threatening or using violence against a victim in a public place"

a person who secretly takes goods from a store without paying

"The shoplifter is caught by security."

"The shoplifter was caught on security camera stuffing merchandise into his backpack."

to steal goods from a store by secretly taking them without paying

"The teenager was caught shoplifting candy."

"The teenager was caught trying to shoplift a candy bar from the convenience store and the owner called his parents immediately."

to move goods or people illegally and secretly into or out of a country

"He tried to smuggle drugs across the border."

"The criminal tried to smuggle illegal drugs across the border by hiding them inside a secret compartment in his car."

an individual who illegally and secretly imports or exports goods or people

"The smuggler hid drugs inside the truck."

"The smuggler hid the illegal goods inside a false compartment in his truck to avoid detection."

to take someone away and hold them in captivity, typically to demand something for their release

"The criminals planned to kidnap the child."

"The criminal planned to kidnap the wealthy businessman's daughter and demand a large ransom for her safe return."

someone who takes an individual away and holds them in captivity, particularly to demand something for their release

"The kidnapper sends a ransom note to the family."

"The kidnapper sends a ransom note to the family and demands one million dollars for the child's release."

to illegally obtain money or property from someone by tricking them

"He attempted to defraud the elderly woman."

"The businessman was found guilty of trying to defraud investors by creating a fake company and selling worthless shares."

a person who deceives others to gain money, particularly in business transactions

"The fraudster tricks elderly people out of their savings."

"The fraudster tricks elderly people out of their savings and pretends to be a bank official."

to persuade someone to do something, often illegal, by giving them an amount of money or something of value

"Do not bribe government officials."

"It is illegal to bribe a government official in exchange for preferential treatment or confidential information."

to unlawfully and intentionally kill another human being

"The suspect planned to murder his rival."

"The suspect was charged with attempting to murder his neighbor after a long standing dispute over the property line."

a person who is guilty of killing another human being deliberately

"The murderer is sentenced to life in prison."

"The murderer is sentenced to life in prison and will never be released from custody."

a person who intentionally starts fires, often for criminal purposes

"The arsonist sets fire to the abandoned warehouse."

"The arsonist was convicted of starting the fire that destroyed the historic warehouse."

to intentionally damage something, particularly public property

"Teens vandalized the park benches."

"The teenagers were arrested for trying to vandalize the school building by spray painting graffiti on the walls late at night."

someone who intentionally damages or destroys public or private property

"The vandal sprays graffiti on the wall."

"The vandal sprays graffiti on the wall and is arrested when a security camera captures his face."

someone who steals things from a place during a time of unrest or disaster

"The looter carries a TV out of the broken shop."

"Police dispersed the crowd and arrested looters who had broken into the electronics store."

person who uses violence or threats to achieve political or ideological goals by targeting innocent people or civilians

"The terrorist group claims responsibility for the attack."

"The terrorist group claims responsibility for the attack and the government increases security at public places."

the act of cheating in order to make illegal money

"The company committed tax fraud."

"The accountant was convicted of fraud after stealing millions of dollars from his clients over several years."

the crime of ending a person's life deliberately

"He was found guilty of first-degree murder."

"The detective dedicated his entire career to solving the brutal murder of a young woman."

to steal from someone by threatening them or using violence, particularly in a public place

"A thief tried to mug her."

"An elderly man was sadly mugged on his way home from work last night by two young men wearing hoodies."

to illegally obtain or exploit copyrighted or patented material for personal gain

"They looted the company's data."

"During the riot several people tried to loot electronics from the broken store windows."

to force someone to act or obey by instilling intense fear, often through threats or violence

"The gang tried to terrorize the neighborhood."

"The gang used violence and threats to terrorize the local community and force residents to pay protection money."