Embezzlement Definition, Usage & Legal Consequences

Meaning 1：misappropriation of funds (embezzlement)

embezzlement 🔊

/ɪmˈbez.əl.mənt/

taking money that someone trusted you to look after, and using it for yourself without permission.

Embezzlement scene: person nervously initiating unauthorized company fund transfer to personal account

misappropriation of funds 🔊

➕

/ˌmɪs.əˌproʊ.priˈeɪ.ʃən əv fʌndz/

The fraudulent appropriation of property (typically money) entrusted to one's care but owned by another.

📁 Category：Laws & Regulations 🔖 Level：Advanced

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Old French 'embesillier' (to make away with, cause to disappear, maltreat). Entered English via Anglo-French.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine someone saying, 'EMpire's B.E.S. (Business Expenses) ZLE (fizzle)' - funds vanish from the business account.

📖 Example

The company's accountant was fired and arrested for embezzlement after he transferred funds to buy himself a luxury car. 🔊 The company's accountant was fired and arrested for misappropriation of funds after he transferred funds to buy himself a luxury car.

🔗 Collocations

corporate embezzlement – funds stolen from a company by an employee or officer

charged with embezzlement – formally accused of the crime of embezzlement

embezzlement scheme – a planned method for secretly taking entrusted money

🔄 Synonyms

misappropriation (n.) – the dishonest or unauthorized use of funds or property entrusted to one's care.

defalcation (n.) – a formal term, often legal, for embezzlement or the misappropriation of funds by a person in a position of trust.

peculation (n.) – the act of embezzling or misappropriating public or official funds.

🌱 Derivatives

embezzle (v.) – to steal money that you are responsible for or that belongs to your employer.

embezzler (n.) – a person who embezzles money.

📖 Cultural Story

The word entered English in the 15th century from Anglo-French. It reflects a longstanding legal and social concern regarding the abuse of entrusted property, a concept central to trust-based economic systems and fiduciary law.