once a thief, always a thief
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
A person found to have stolen another's property will always be marked as a thief.
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Người bị phát hiện đánh cắp tài sản của người khác sẽ luôn bị coi là kẻ trộm
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Where it’s used:
Used
American English
Sources & notes
Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).
Common questions
What does “once a thief, always a thief” mean?
A person found to have stolen another's property will always be marked as a thief.
Is “once a thief, always a thief” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.