embezzle
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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embezzlesimple
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embezzlessimple
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have embezzledperfect
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has embezzledperfect
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am embezzlingprogressive
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are embezzlingprogressive
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is embezzlingprogressive
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have been embezzlingperfect progressive
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has been embezzlingperfect progressive
Past
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embezzledsimple
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had embezzledperfect
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was embezzlingprogressive
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were embezzlingprogressive
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had been embezzlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of embezzle
1375–1425; late Middle English embesilen < Anglo-French embeseiller to destroy, make away with, equivalent to em- em- 1 + beseiller, Old French beseiller to destroy < ?
Explanation
When a person embezzles, it usually means that he is stealing money from his employer. If he is caught embezzling, it probably also means that he will soon be unemployed. The word embezzle implies more than simply "to steal." When a person embezzles, he or she takes advantage of an employer's trust for personal gain. Embezzling is a so-called "white-collar crime" which often involves some sort of cover-up, like falsifying financial records or stealing small amounts of money over a long period of time. The word embezzle comes from an Old French word meaning "maltreat or ravage," besillier, and an embezzler can be said to ravage someone else's money.
Vocabulary lists containing embezzle
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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.
EDINBURGH—A political operative’s yearslong scheme to embezzle party funds has become a source of anger and embarrassment in Scotland, but not entirely for the reasons you might think.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell used charge cards, bank transfers and fake invoices to embezzle more than £400,000 from the party, it has been revealed.
From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026
During the appeal trial, she denied that the RN had any system to embezzle European Parliament funds and has said her party acted in "complete good faith".
From Barron's • Feb. 11, 2026
César Franck and others got a kick out of Alessandro Stradella, the Baroque opera composer who attempted to embezzle the Roman Catholic Church.
From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2025
It was this capricious and wilful beauty who made poor Andrea break his word and embezzle the money King Francis had given him to spend for works of art.
From Castilian Days by Hay, John
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.
