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Glite Dictionary
embezzled

embezzled

8.3
Money or property that someone trusted to manage secretly takes for themselves
  • adjective
  • /ɪmˈbɛzəld/
translation icon : malversado
  • After the audit, it became clear that a considerable sum had been embezzled from the organization.

Examples

  • The accountant was found guilty of transferring embezzled assets into secret accounts.

  • The report detailed the recovery of embezzled property by the authorities.

  • Investigators discovered a large sum of embezzled money missing from the nonprofit's funds.

  • The embezzled funds were never recovered.

  • Many employees were shocked to discover the embezzled amounts.

  • The investigators concluded that the missing funds were embezzled by the trusted treasurer.

  • The company lost thousands of dollars due to embezzled payments siphoned into private accounts.

Synonyms

ill-gotten
vsembezzled
12 7.7

Money you get by stealing or cheating

involves taking from a position of trust rather than any illegal origin
misappropriated
vsembezzled
  • Formal
8.4

Money or property someone takes and uses dishonestly when trusted to keep it

is done specifically by someone trusted to manage those funds

Antonyms

return
231 1.0

An act of giving something back to its owner

refund
115 1.1

Money given back when someone paid too much or is not happy with what they bought

How Illegal

embezzled
8.3
misappropriated
  • Formal
8.4

Surface Forms

embezzled positive

Morphology

embezzled = embezzle (opaque) = embezzle + ed

Formation of the past participle is a regular inflection from the verb 'embezzle' and is straightforward for learners who know the verb.

Etymology

Embezzled comes from an old prefix em- meaning 'in' and from the idea of putting money into someone's care, much like the word embed means to 'put into' something. So, when a person trusted to hold money secretly takes it, the funds are called embezzled, meaning taken dishonestly by someone who was trusted.