窃盗

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: It is read せっとう. 窃 and 盗 relate to stealing another person's property, forming a noun for theft. It is common in news and descriptions of incidents.
• Basic usage: It refers to theft as an act or to incidents involving it. In the example, a clerk stops a customer suspected of theft.
  • 店員は窃盗の疑いがある客を呼び止めた。

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• The act versus the person
  • 窃盗 names the act, so it should not be translated directly as a person, a thief.
• Suspicion versus established fact
  • 窃盗の疑い expresses suspicion of theft and does not by itself establish that the person stole anything.