Present participle of 'rob'—taking something from a person or place illegally and often violently; stealing or depriving someone of something.
From Old French 'rober,' possibly from Germanic origins. The sense developed from stealing clothes to general theft, and entered English by the 12th century.
In medieval times, 'rob' specifically meant to steal someone's clothes or belongings while traveling—highway robbers literally robbed people on roads—showing how the word started very specific but broadened over centuries.
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