defalcation
Americannoun
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misappropriation of money or funds held by an official, trustee, or other fiduciary.
-
the sum misappropriated.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of defalcation
1425–75; late Middle English: deduction from wages (< Middle French ) < Medieval Latin dēfalcātiōn- (stem of dēfalcātiō ) a taking away, equivalent to dēfalcāt ( us ) ( see defalcate) + -iōn- -ion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They decided that they had to share a collective responsibility for not having discovered the defalcation earlier.
From Time Magazine Archive
When the Attorney General had asked the chief of his criminal division to prosecute a Department of Justice employe for a $2,000 defalcation it was Mr. Malloy's turn to balk.
From Time Magazine Archive
Last month a jury pronounced Treasurer Baldwin guilty of perjury by falsifying bank statements to cover up the defalcation.
From Time Magazine Archive
With the Governor's errors the chief topic of conversation in the Green Mountain State, State's Attorney Bloomer dug deeper into the defalcation.
From Time Magazine Archive
I knew all about the defalcation from my father just after the meeting.
From The Quality of Mercy by William Dean Howells
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
