peculate
[ pek-yuh-leyt ]
/ ˈpɛk yəˌleɪt /
verb (used with or without object), pec·u·lat·ed, pec·u·lat·ing.
to steal or take dishonestly (money, especially public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.
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Origin of peculate
First recorded in 1740–50; verb use of peculate “embezzlement” (now obsolete), from Latin past participle and noun pecūlātus “embezzled; embezzlement,” equivalent to pecūlā(rī) ) “to embezzle,” literally, “to make public property private” + -tus suffix of verbal action, derivative of pecu “wealth, livestock, movable property”; see origin at peculiar, -ate1
OTHER WORDS FROM peculate
pec·u·la·tion, nounpec·u·la·tor, nounun·pec·u·lat·ing, adjectiveWords nearby peculate
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for peculate
No man ever paid a bribe for the handling of the public money, but to peculate from it.
British Dictionary definitions for peculate
peculate
/ (ˈpɛkjʊˌleɪt) /
verb
to appropriate or embezzle (public money)
Derived forms of peculate
peculation, nounpeculator, nounWord Origin for peculate
C18: from Latin pecūlārī, from pecūlium private property (originally, cattle); see peculiar
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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