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to embezzle

to embezzle

28 8.1
To steal money or things that you were trusted with and use them yourself illegally
  • verb
  • /ɪmˈbɛzl/
translation icon : malversar
  • The accountant was found guilty of embezzling funds from the company's accounts.
  • embezzling funds
  • embezzled money

The DOJ to drop the investigation into Ho or did he embezzle this money from from Patrick Ho?

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Examples

  • Hannah's father had been the president of a local bank and had been convicted of embezzling thousands of dollars.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • To pay for it, he probably would have to embezzle from university research accounts.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • That would be a fraudulent way to embezzle money from the British government.

  • Mr. Flintstone, you are about to embezzle a great deal of money.

  • Groups of officers received long prison terms for embezzling funds from an Air Force academy.

    Academic text (1997)
  • How many times have we seen people embezzle tens of thousands from their employer and get probation?

    Blog text (21)
  • The man in charge of your inheritance embezzled the money.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Woman Guilty of Embezzling $200,000 from Education Nonprofit

    Academic text (2016)
  • The school administrator should resist the temptation to embezzle UBE funds.

    Academic text (2007)
  • Honestly, I try to tune out all of the audit talk, but there was this one story about this comptroller guy in Tacoma, Washington, who embezzled $25 million.

Synonyms

to steal
vsto embezzle
1.0

Take something that does not belong to you without permission

adds that the act breaches an entrusted role and is for personal gain
to defraud
vsto embezzle
  • Formal
40 6.9

To illegally get money or things from someone by lying

focuses on breaching trust specifically not just deception against anyone
to swindle
vsto embezzle
20 5.5

To cheat someone and take their money by lying

involves taking from a person you were trusted to serve or employ
to siphon off
vsto embezzle
5 7.9

To secretly take money from a business or charity for your own use

implies taking trusted funds directly from employer or account
to misappropriate
vsto embezzle
  • Formal
5 8.4

To take money or things you were trusted with and use them yourself

focuses more on stealing from a position of trust often employer
to defalcate
vsto embezzle
  • Formal
9.9

To steal money that was given to you to look after

means taking money trusted to you often from your employer
to peculate
vsto embezzle
  • Formal
9.9

To steal money or property that someone trusted you to keep

is the same idea but emphasizes employer or entrusted position theft
to malversate
vsto embezzle
  • NSFW
9.9

To take money that people trust you to keep and use it for yourself

is closer to taking trusted money at work rather than general theft

Antonyms

231 1.0

An act of giving something back to its owner

63 5.3

To pay back money someone spent for you

How Serious

to defraud
  • Formal
40 6.9
to embezzle
28 8.1
to steal
1.0
to pilfer
16 6.5

Surface Forms

embezzle infinitive
embezzled past
embezzled past participle
embezzling present participle
embezzles third person singular

Etymology

Embezzle comes from old French and the word beginning em- which means 'in', creating the picture of putting money into your own box. So, to embezzle is to secretly take money you were trusted with.