embezzlement
CulturalExplanation
If you are glee club treasurer, and you pocket twenty glee dollars saying you used it to buy lozenges, you are committing embezzlement, the theft of money or property that you officially manage. In order for stealing to be embezzlement, you need to both be in charge of the funds or property you are stealing, and you need to conceal your theft. Because of this, it is classified as a type of fraud. People who commit embezzlement often create fake paper trails — receipts, canceled checks, false signatures — to hide their crime.
Vocabulary lists containing embezzlement
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for April 24–April 30, 2021
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Vocabulary Video Contest (2013) - List 1
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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.
Michael Boaz, former town manager of Pilot Mountain, N.C., was indicted on a felony embezzlement charge on May 11 for allegedly misusing taxpayer money.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026
The accountant’s preliminary review cited evidence of misappropriation and potential embezzlement.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026
He also said it should examine whether public funds provided to the SNP at Westminster were involved in the embezzlement and whether safeguards should be introduced for small donors to political parties and movements.
From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026
On this, Sturgeon draws a distinction between what those concerns were about and the embezzlement Murrell has admitted.
From BBC • May 31, 2026
The word testifying is almost as scary as embezzlement.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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.
