Definition

1. Noun:
   • A person with an irrational urge to steal: A kleptomaniac is someone who has a persistent, uncontrollable, and often irrational impulse to steal items, typically without economic need or personal use for the stolen objects. This behavior is associated with a mental health condition.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The store security was alerted to a known kleptomaniac entering the premises.
  • She was diagnosed as a kleptomaniac after repeatedly stealing trivial items she could easily afford.

Advanced Usage

• Clinical Context: The term is used in psychology and psychiatry to describe a person with kleptomania, which is classified as an impulse control disorder.
  • The therapist specialized in treating kleptomaniacs.
• Figurative/Informal Use: Sometimes used hyperbolically to describe someone who takes things casually or jokingly.
  • My brother is such a kleptomaniac with my snacks! (Note: This is informal and not a clinical usage.)

Variants and Related Words

• Kleptomania (n): The mental disorder or condition characterized by the compulsive urge to steal.
  • Kleptomania is often driven by tension and relieved by the act of stealing.
• Kleptocratic (adj): Relating to a government by thieves (from Greek , thief). This is a different, though etymologically related, word.
  • The regime was accused of being kleptocratic.

Synonyms

• Compulsive thief: A thief who steals due to an irresistible impulse.
• Pathological stealer: Emphasizes the disorder-related nature of the behavior.

Related Phrases

• To have kleptomania: To suffer from the condition.
  • He was found to have kleptomania.
• Kleptomaniac tendencies: Showing signs of the impulse, but not necessarily a formal diagnosis.
  • The behavior suggested kleptomaniac tendencies.

Related Idioms

• : An informal idiom meaning to have a tendency to steal.
  • Be careful with your wallet around him; he's got sticky fingers. (This is a colloquial synonym but does not imply the clinical diagnosis of a kleptomaniac.)

Noun

1. someone with an irrational urge to steal in the absence of an economic motive