embezzle

[em-bez-uhl]

See more synonyms for embezzle on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), em·bez·zled, em·bez·zling.

to appropriate fraudulently to one's own use, as money or property entrusted to one's care.

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 < ?

Related formsem·bez·zle·ment, nounem·bez·zler, nounnon·em·bez·zle·ment, nounun·em·bez·zled, adjective

Synonyms for embezzle

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com

misappropriate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for embezzle

misappropriate, pilfer, purloin, filch, appropriate, skim, misuse, loot, abstract, thieve, misapply, forge, peculate, defalcate

Examples from the Web for embezzle

Contemporary Examples of embezzle

In fact, according to the 2011 Marquet Report on Embezzlement, women are more likely to embezzle than men.
Most Notorious ‘Pink-Collar’ Criminal to Be Sentenced for $53 Million Theft
Kelly Pope
February 14, 2013
The village is poor, but the local party secretary managed to embezzle at least $700,000-$800,000.
Has China Gone Mad?
Huang Hung
April 2, 2010

Historical Examples of embezzle

I don't say it was proved on the other hand that he did embezzle that sum.
Hard Cash
Charles Reade
Guzman, however, managed to embezzle a couple of partridges and some quails.
Legends & Romances of Spain
Lewis Spence
I cannot believe that that man will ever embezzle money again.
Selections from Previous Works
Samuel Butler
"Embezzle for him $70,000 worth of securities," thought the examiner.
Roads of Destiny
O. Henry
In return they were always trying to beg or embezzle the treasure of the king at Susa.
A Review of the Systems of Ethics Founded on the Theory of Evolution
C. M. Williams

British Dictionary definitions for embezzle

embezzle

verb

to convert (money or property entrusted to one) fraudulently to one's own use

Derived Formsembezzlement, nounembezzler, noun

Word Origin for embezzle

C15: from Anglo-French embeseiller to destroy, from Old French beseiller to make away with, of uncertain origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for embezzle

early 15c., from Anglo-French embesiler "to steal, cause to disappear" (c.1300), from Old French em- (see en- (1)) + besillier "torment, destroy, gouge," of unknown origin. Sense of "to dispose of fraudulently" is first recorded 1580s. Related: Embezzled; embezzling.