What it means
دزدیدن (dozdidan) means to steal. It is built from دزد (dozd), the pure Persian word for a thief, which goes back to Middle Persian. The verb covers literal theft as well as figurative uses: you can دزدیدن a glance (یه نگاه دزدیدن), steal someone’s heart (دل دزدیدن), or steal an idea. In legal and news contexts you may also see سرقت کردن (serqat kardan) as a more formal Arabic-rooted term for theft, but دزدیدن is the natural spoken choice. The noun دزدی (dozdi) means stealing or theft as a concept.
How to use it
- کیفمو دزدیدن. (kifamo dozdidan.) “They stole my bag.”
- این ایده رو از کجا دزدیدی؟ (in ide ro az kojâ dozdidi?) “Where did you steal this idea from?”
- یه نگاه ازش دزدیدم. (ye negâh azash dozdidam.) “I stole a glance at them.”
- بچهها از مغازه چیزی دزدیده بودن. (bachehâ az maghâze chizi dozdide budan.) “The kids had stolen something from the shop.”
Cultural note
Beyond literal theft, دزدیدن lives a rich life in Persian idiom and poetry. دل دزدیدن (del dozdidan), literally to steal the heart, is a standard romantic expression for falling for someone or making someone fall for you. Stolen glances are a recurring motif in classical verse, where lovers must look at each other secretly and briefly. In modern slang, calling something دزدی can also mean it is a knockoff or bootleg product, giving the word a consumer-culture layer familiar to anyone who has shopped at a Tehran bazaar.