purloin
/pɜːˈlɔɪn/verb
purloin is spelled P-U-R-L-O-I-N: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 39 million words in written English, the 191,932nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, purloin means “To take the property of another, often in breach of trust; to appropriate wrongfully; to steal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in purloin?
| Letters | 7: P-U-R-L-O-I-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 39 million words; the 191,932nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is purloin?
Purloin appears about once in every 39 million words in written English, the 191,932nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce purloin?
- UK /pɜːˈlɔɪn/
Purloin has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-purloin.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of purloin
- purloins present, singular, he/she/it
- purloining participle, present
- purloined participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does purloin mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To take the property of another, often in breach of trust; to appropriate wrongfully; to steal.
- 2
To commit theft; to thieve.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Purloin in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | dépouiller |
| German | entwenden, mitgehen lassen , stehlen |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does purloin come from?
From Middle English purloynen (“to remove”), borrowed from Anglo-Norman purloigner (“to put far away”), one of the variants of Old French porloignier. Doublet of prolong.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).