The kanji 盗 primarily means "to steal," "to rob," or "theft." It signifies the act of taking something that does not belong to oneself, often secretly and illegally. It encompasses the concept of depriving someone of their property through unauthorized means.

・On-yomi (音読み): ・tō (トウ) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): ・nusumu (ぬすむ)

⚫︎ 盗難 Translation: theft; larceny ⚫︎ 盗人 Translation: thief; robber ⚫︎ 万引きは犯罪です。 Translation: Shoplifting is a crime. (Literally: Shoplifting is a crime.)

The kanji 盗 is a 形声文字 (keisei moji), a phono-semantic compound. The left side is 𠂉 (shoku, meaning "to walk, move, or run") which provides the semantic component, indicating that the act of stealing involves movement. The right side is 皿 (sara, meaning "plate, dish"), used here phonetically to give the sound tō. Together, they suggest "to stealthily move and take away something", representing the act of stealing.