Defalcate (Verb)
Meaning
Appropriate (as property entrusted to one's care) fraudulently to one's own use; "The accountant embezzled thousands of dollars while working for the wealthy family".
Classification
Verbs of buying, selling, owning.
Examples
- The company's auditor discovered that the CEO had been using company funds to defalcate millions for his own lavish lifestyle.
- It turned out the employee who was in charge of the office's petty cash had been embezzling money to defalcate it into his own bank account.
- As the embezzlement case went to trial, the juror realized that the accused had indeed attempted to defalcate the stolen funds through secret offshore accounts.
- The politician in question continued to claim his innocence despite overwhelming evidence suggesting he did defalcate funds from his election campaign.
- Her position of trust within the organization actually enabled her to secretly defalcate thousands over the course of two years.