"the pilfering of goods from a shop," 1690s, from shoplifter.
Entries linking to shoplifting
shoplifter n.
"one who purloins goods from a shop while posing as a customer," 1670s, from shop (n.) + agent noun of lift (v.). Also as nouns in the same sense were shop-lift (1670s); shop-thief (1849).
shoplift v.
also shop-lift, "steal from a shop while posing as a customer," 1711, a back-formation from shoplifting. Earlier it was rogue's cant for "a shoplifter" (1660s). Related: Shoplifted.