The most commonly committed crimes in the world are those of theft of objects (also called larceny). But not all crimes where theft occurs are called theft in the law. Depending on what is taken, how it is taken and when it is taken determines what the name of the action is called.
In this online exercise you will not only learn, understand and remember the names of the different crimes where theft occurs, but you will also learn the names of crimes where there is damage to people's property or possessions. These are the names of the crimes in the common law legal system, the system of law which is used in the majority of English-speaking countries.
Do the quiz at the end of the exercise to both ensure you correctly understand the different criminal offences and to help you to remember them in the future.
However, before you start, you need to be aware that although the names of most criminal offences are the same or very similar in all countries which have a legal system based on common law, some crimes do have different names in different countries (or even states in America). For example, aggravated burglary in the English legal system is generally called home invasion in the American legal system. Where a criminal offence has different names to that in the exercise, this name (or names) will be given in the learn more section for each question in the exercise quiz at the end of the web page.
To learn the names of crimes which involve stealing in financial and business situations, do our online exercise on the types of financial crimes.
To learn the names of violent crimes, do our online exercise on the types of crimes against people part 1.
Read the following conversation between two friends, Peter and Juan, who are talking about crimes where theft occurs or against property.
The words in bold are the names of different types of criminal offences. Remember them because at the end of the text there is a quiz to check your understanding.
Peter:'Have you heard what happened to Julie?'
Juan:'No! Nothing bad I hope.'
Peter:'Well, there was a burglary at her house last week.'
Juan:'That's terrible! I hope she wasn't attacked when it happened.'
Peter:'It was just a burglary. Fortunately, she or her family weren't there when it happened. They stole the TV, jewellery and money from her house. If she was there and was attacked or threatened with violence by the criminal when it was happening, then it would be called an aggravated burglary. But fortunately that didn't happen.'
Juan:'I'm pleased that didn't happen. Would it be called a burglary if you entered somebody's property without their permission, but you have no intention to do anything criminal, like steal something, while you are there.'
Peter:'No, it isn't. For it to be considered burglary, there has to be either the intention or the act of doing something else illegal whilst you are there. The most common reason for committing a burglary is stealing things from the property, which is called theft in English.
But even if you have no intention of doing or don't do another crime whilst you are on someone's property without their permission, it is still a crime. That is called trespass in English. You would be trespassing even if you enter somebody's private garden without their permission. But if you damage their property (e.g. force a lock or damage a fence) or possessions whilst you are there, then you would be committing the additional crime of criminal damage.'
Juan:'So, what If I was on the street and I broke the window of someone's house without entering the property. Would that be committing the crime of trespass and criminal damage?'
Peter:'Trespass, no. But criminal damage, yes. You would probably be charged with a type of criminal damage called vandalism. It is a type of criminal damage where you damage someone's property. Graffiti or even throwing eggs at someone's house or car are acts of vandalism.'
Juan:'OK. So if I set fire to somebody's property, would that be called vandalism?'
Peter:'Like vandalism, it is a type of criminal damage, but it isn't an act of vandalism. Setting fire to someone's property is called arson.'
Juan:'I didn't know that before. Oh, I didn't tell you that I saw someone committing a crime in the supermarket yesterday. She was hiding things from the supermarket in her coat.'
Peter:'Well, if she left the supermarket without paying, she was committing the crime of shoplifting. Not a serious or a violent crime but it is still theft like pickpocketing.'
Juan:'What's that?'
Peter:'Pickpocketing is when somebody steals something like a wallet, a watch, a bag from you without initially knowing that it has been stolen. It often happens in public places like in the street, on trains or in bars.'
Juan:'Somebody I know had their wallet and phone stolen in the street by somebody with a knife in central London.'
Peter:'When someone threatens or uses violence to get you to give them your possessions, that is not pickpocketing, it is called mugging. Unlike pickpocketing, you know the theft is happening at the time and you are afraid.'
Juan:'They are very different.'
Peter:'A mugging is a type of robbery. A theft can happen without a threat or use of violence or fear. Whereas with a robbery, there is always the use or threat of use of violence or fear. Like for example, a bank robbery or a carjacking (where someone forces a person out of their car and then steals it).'
Juan:'I have heard people use the word extortion, is that the same as robbery?'
Peter:'They are similar, but different. A robbery is when you force somebody to give you something at the moment it is happening, whereas with extortion the victim often promises to give the criminal what they want to take from them at some time in the future. With robbery, the criminal always uses or threatens to use violence or fear. Whereas, in extortion, they can do that (e.g. threaten to burn somebody's house if they don't do what they want), but they can also threaten to hurt somebody else or threaten to reveal information about the victim, which they don't want others to know.'
Juan:'When you either force someone to do something or give you something by threatening to reveal information about the person which they don't want others to know, isn't that called blackmail?'
Peter:'Yes, it is. It is a type of extortion where although the person doesn't want to do or give what the criminal wants, they kind of agree to do or give it. That is basically what extortion is.'
Below is a definition/description of each of the crimes in bold from the above text. Now choose the crime from the question's selection box which you believe answers each question. Only use one crime once. Click on the "Check Answers" button at the bottom of the quiz to check your answers.
When the answer is correct, two icons will appear next to the answer. The icon contains extra information about the word/phrase. In the
icon, you can listen to the pronunciation of the word/phrase.
To learn the names of crimes which involve stealing in financial and business situations, do our online exercise on the types of financial crimes.
To learn the names of violent crimes, do our online exercise on types of crimes against people part 1.
Now that you understand the new vocabulary, practise it by creating your own sentences with the new words/phrases. Also click on the icon next to each correct answer and listen how each is pronounced correctly.
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