---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I like thieves. Some of my best friends…"
description: "\"I like thieves. Some of my best friends are thieves. Why, just last week we had the president of the bank over for dinner.\" — W. C. Fields"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png"
---

#  I like thieves. Some of my best friends are thieves. Why…

![“I like thieves. Some of my best friends are thieves. Why, just last week we had the president of the bank over for dinner.” quote by W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png)

> “I like thieves. Some of my best friends are thieves. Why, just last week we had the president of the bank over for dinner.”

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He admires thieves for their daring and camaraderie, seeing them as friends who share boldness.

**In simple terms:** He likes thieves for their boldness.

Key Takeaway

Embrace boldness in friendships.

Themes

friendship risk morality adventure

Mood

playful provocative

Type

humorous observational

When to use this quote

- Networking
- team building
- creative collaborations
- ethical dilemmas

Key Concepts

Ethics social bonds risk‑taking

Questions to Reflect On

- Do you admire risky behavior?
- How do you balance loyalty and ethics?

A Different Perspective

Thieves may harm others; admiration can be misguided.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Best friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-friend/) [Best friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-friends/) [Dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [My best friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-best-friend/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [Thieves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thieves/) [Week](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/week/)

## Related quotes

> [Friends are thieves of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/friends-are-thieves-of-time/)

[Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/)

> [Why grab possessions like thieves, or divide them like socialists when you can ignore them like wise men?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-clifford-barney/why-grab-possessions-like-thieves-or-divide-them-like-socialists-when/)

[Natalie Clifford Barney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-clifford-barney/)

> [They heard somewhere in that tenantless night a bell that tolled and ceased where no bell was and they rode out on the round…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/they-heard-somewhere-in-that-tenantless-night-a-bell-that-tolled-and/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [ The threat \[of the U.S. bills SOPA and PIPA\] is the inversion of the burden of proof, where we suddenly are all treated like… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clay-shirky/the-threat-of-the-u-s-bills-sopa-and-pipa-is-the-inversion-of-the/)

[Clay Shirky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clay-shirky/)

> [We have shared out, like thieves, the amazing treasures of days and nights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/we-have-shared-out-like-thieves-the-amazing-treasures-of-days-and/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [Treating your audience like thieves is absurd. Anyone who chooses to listen to our music becomes a collaborator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-tweedy/treating-your-audience-like-thieves-is-absurd-anyone-who-chooses-to/)

[Jeff Tweedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-tweedy/)

> [“These meetings, they're like thieves—they follow you around, wait until you're not looking, and pounce.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-jackson-bennett/these-meetings-they-re-like-thieves-they-follow-you-around-wait-until/)

[Robert Jackson Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-jackson-bennett/)

> [“And fantasy it was, for we were not strong, only aggressive; we were not free, merely licensed; we were not compassionate, we were polite;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/and-fantasy-it-was-for-we-were-not-strong-only-aggressive-we-were-not/)

[Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/)

> [“The green fractals of the forest and the eons of faint star clusters above—my math’s teacher’s order in the universe—were nothing like the thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anya-allyn/the-green-fractals-of-the-forest-and-the-eons-of-faint-star-clusters/)

[Anya Allyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anya-allyn/)

> [“they rode out on the round dais of the earth which alone was dark and no light to it and which carried their figures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/they-rode-out-on-the-round-dais-of-the-earth-which-alone-was-dark-and/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [Don't be afraid to fail. I fail every day. I failed thousands of times writing The Book Thief, and that book now means everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/don-t-be-afraid-to-fail-i-fail-every-day-i-failed-thousands-of-times/)

[Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/)

> [My dad was undeniably famous when I was a kid - he was on Wogan and Clive James and the radio every week, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-coren/my-dad-was-undeniably-famous-when-i-was-a-kid-he-was-on-wogan-and/)

[Giles Coren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-coren/)

> [It is your friends who make your world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/it-is-your-friends-who-make-your-world/)

[William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/)

> [That's your friend. My husband is my best friend. He's not the mirror that holds up my flaws. He's just the guy who's like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/that-s-your-friend-my-husband-is-my-best-friend-he-s-not-the-mirror/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [I believe in God, because he is the only thing that kept me going. He's my best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-hahn/i-believe-in-god-because-he-is-the-only-thing-that-kept-me-going-he-s/)

[Jessica Hahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-hahn/)

## More by W. C. Fields

> [Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house unless they have a well-stocked bar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/thou-shalt-not-covet-thy-neighbor-s-house-unless-they-have-a-well/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [Take me down to the bar! We'll drink breakfast together!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/take-me-down-to-the-bar-we-ll-drink-breakfast-together/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [There comes a time in the affairs of man when he must take the bull by the tail and face the situation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/there-comes-a-time-in-the-affairs-of-man-when-he-must-take-the-bull/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [If pigs had wings, they would be pigeons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/if-pigs-had-wings-they-would-be-pigeons/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [I feel like a midget with muddy feet had been walking over my tongue all night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-feel-like-a-midget-with-muddy-feet-had-been-walking-over-my-tongue/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [What would you do if you were President, and, on the first day of May, the Russian Ambassador presented you with a beautiful cake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/what-would-you-do-if-you-were-president-and-on-the-first-day-of-may/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [My illness is due to my doctor's insistence that I drink milk, a whitish fluid they force down helpless babies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/my-illness-is-due-to-my-doctor-s-insistence-that-i-drink-milk-a/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [I am an expert of electricity. My father occupied the chair of applied electricity at the state prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-am-an-expert-of-electricity-my-father-occupied-the-chair-of-applied/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [Bert Williams was the funniest man I ever saw and the saddest man I ever knew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/bert-williams-was-the-funniest-man-i-ever-saw-and-the-saddest-man-i/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [A comic should suffer as much over a single line as a man with a hernia would in picking up a heavy barbell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/a-comic-should-suffer-as-much-over-a-single-line-as-a-man-with-a/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [All my available funds are completely tied up in cash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/all-my-available-funds-are-completely-tied-up-in-cash/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [Back in my rummy days, I would tremble and shake for hours upon arising. It was the only exercise I got.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/back-in-my-rummy-days-i-would-tremble-and-shake-for-hours-upon/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [Happiness means quiet nerves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/happiness-means-quiet-nerves/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [W. C. Fields, a lifetime agnostic, was discovered reading a Bible on his deathbed. ''I'm looking for a loop-hole,'' he explained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/w-c-fields-a-lifetime-agnostic-was-discovered-reading-a-bible-on-his/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

> [The movie people would have nothing to do with me until they heard me speak in a Broadway play, then they all wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/the-movie-people-would-have-nothing-to-do-with-me-until-they-heard-me/)

[W. C. Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

[Explore all 221 W. C. Fields quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/)

## More Best friend quotes

> [“But my best friend from college was silent for a long time. She, of all of my friends, had seen the parade of sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/but-my-best-friend-from-college-was-silent-for-a-long-time-she-of-all/)

[Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/)

> [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/)

[Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/)

> [“Before you were my enemy, you were my best friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/before-you-were-my-enemy-you-were-my-best-friend/)

[Kresley Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/)

> [I fell in love with my best friend, but I know that if it doesn't last, it will never be the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelly-yang/i-fell-in-love-with-my-best-friend-but-i-know-that-if-it-doesn-t-last/)

Shelly Yang

> [A best friend isn't someone who's just always there for you.Its someone who understands you a bit more than you understand yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/a-best-friend-isn-t-someone-who-s-just-always-there-for-you-its/)

[Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/)

> [Back home I get to see my old friends!(: But they don't understand the change in me and I can't explain it to them...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade/back-home-i-get-to-see-my-old-friends-but-they-don-t-understand-the/)

[Jade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade/)

> [This goes out to someone that was Once the most important person in my life I didn't realize it at the time I can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aviation/this-goes-out-to-someone-that-was-once-the-most-important-person-in/)

Aviation

> [You’re crazy,” said her best friend, Angela, as the bell rang to signal five minutes before the first class on the first day back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/you-re-crazy-said-her-best-friend-angela-as-the-bell-rang-to-signal/)

[Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/)

> [Sometimes the right people can make your day. They're called best friends :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/sometimes-the-right-people-can-make-your-day-they-re-called-best/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [Here is your third gift from Me once again..I had a fourth gift it was about me making a video telling you how much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilbear/here-is-your-third-gift-from-me-once-again-i-had-a-fourth-gift-it-was/)

[LilBear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilbear/)

> [Our friendship is like a cup of tea¦a special blend of you and me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orebela-gbenga/our-friendship-is-like-a-cup-of-tea-a-special-blend-of-you-and-me/)

[Orebela Gbenga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orebela-gbenga/)

> [When you have the most beautiful best friend in the world what more could I ask for I love you Tay :) you mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick/when-you-have-the-most-beautiful-best-friend-in-the-world-what-more/)

[Nick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick/)

> [I believe in God, because he is the only thing that kept me going. He's my best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-hahn/i-believe-in-god-because-he-is-the-only-thing-that-kept-me-going-he-s/)

[Jessica Hahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-hahn/)

> [ONE stone enough to break a glass,,, ONE sentence is enough to break a heart,,, FIRST sight is enough to fall in love,,, ONE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-stone-enough-to-break-a-glass-one-sentence-is-enough-to-break-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [A Real Man will help build his woman's self esteem not break it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-s-voice/a-real-man-will-help-build-his-woman-s-self-esteem-not-break-it/)

Lisa's Voice

[Browse all 6,524 Best friend quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-friend/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I like thieves. Some of my best friends are thieves. Why, just last week we had the president of the bank over for dinner.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "W. C. Fields"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-are-thieves-why-just-last-week/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Best friend"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-are-thieves-why-just-last-week/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73a/w-c-fields-1625_best-friend_i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-a_2659172.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I like thieves. Some of my best friends are thieves. Why, just last week we had the president of the bank…” — W. C. Fields",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "W. C. Fields",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-c-fields/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I like thieves. Some of my...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-are-thieves-why-just-last-week/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-c-fields/i-like-thieves-some-of-my-best-friends-are-thieves-why-just-last-week/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
