# who stole what?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [February 16, 2001, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749 "2001-02-16T15:23:58Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@satanslawyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/satanslawyer)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2001, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/1 "2001-02-16T15:23:58Z")
My coworkers and I are at a loss. Where does the slang term for theft “kipe” (sp?) come from. As in, “Hey, who kiped my favorite pen?” The only explanation we could come up with was that it was derived from the offensive slang term for a jew, kike (sp?). Does anyone out there have any clue as to where this word came from? And if it did come from the jewish slang, how did the spelling and pronunciation change?
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### Author:  [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2001, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/2 "2001-02-16T15:39:17Z")
Well, I did a quick dictionary search, and couldn’t find “kipe” meaning to steal, but a kipe is a basket for catching fish, and comes from an old english word meaning to catch.
[http://www.dictionary.com/cgi-bin/dict.pl?term=kipe](http://www.dictionary.com/cgi-bin/dict.pl?term=kipe)
Maybe the usage could come from that.
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### Author:  [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2001, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/3 "2001-02-16T15:53:01Z")
Sounds like your “kipe” is really “cop,” or maybe some regional variation thereof. From [The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary)
> [@](#):
>
> Main Entry: **cop** , _transitive verb_.
> Etymology: perhaps from Dutch _kapen_ to steal, from Frisian _kApia_ to take away; akin to Old High German _kouf_ trade – more at CHEAP
> Date: 1704
> 1 _slang_ : to get hold of : CATCH, CAPTURE; also : PURCHASE
> 2 _slang_ : STEAL, SWIPE
>
> - **cop a plea** : to plead guilty to a lesser charge in order to avoid standing trial for a more serious one broadly : to admit fault and plead for mercy
Looks like a plausible source, yes?
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### Author:  [@bizerta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizerta)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2001, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/4 "2001-02-16T18:07:31Z")
I thought it was “kite”. My dictionary defines it as a worthless negotiable instrument (forged check for example).
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### Author:  [@Alias](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alias)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2001, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/5 "2001-02-16T18:15:17Z")
I always heard “kife”.
“Hey, someone kifed my pen!”
Perhaps it’s a regional thing.
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### Author:  [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2001, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/6 "2001-02-16T18:34:00Z")
Here’s an earlier discussion of cop/kipe/kife/kite/… 🙂
[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=35570](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=35570)
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### Author:  [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)
#### Post date: [February 17, 2001, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-stole-what/54749/7 "2001-02-17T08:22:24Z")
Here in Australia, “swipe” is commonly used. I don’t know if it is related to “kipe” or not.