Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Popular Searches
on Ask.com
Nearby Entries
defalcate - 5 dictionary results

de⋅fal⋅cate

  [di-fal-keyt, -fawl-]
Use defalcate in a Sentence
–verb (used without object), -cat⋅ed, -cat⋅ing. Law.
to be guilty of defalcation.
Origin:
1530–40; < ML dēfalcātus (ptp. of dēfalcāre to cut off), equiv. to dē- de- + falcātus; see falcate

Related forms:
de⋅fal⋅ca⋅tor, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To defalcate
de·fal·cate   (dĭ-fāl'kāt', -fôl'-, děf'əl-)   
intr.v.   de·fal·cat·ed, de·fal·cat·ing, de·fal·cates
To misuse funds; embezzle.

[Medieval Latin dēfalcāre, dēfalcāt-, to mow, deduct : Latin dē-, de- + Latin falx, falc-, sickle.]
de'fal·ca'tion (dē'fāl-kā'shən, -fôl-, děf'əl-) n., de·fal'ca'tor n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Defalcate

De*fal"cate\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Defalcated; p. pr. & vb. n. Defalcating.] [LL. defalcatus, p. p. of defalcare to deduct, orig., to cut off with a sickle; L. de- + falx, falcis, a sickle. See Falchion.] To cut off; to take away or deduct a part of; -- used chiefly of money, accounts, rents, income, etc.

To show what may be practicably and safely defalcated from them [the estimates]. --Burke.

Defalcate

De*fal"cate\, v. i. To commit defalcation; to embezzle money held in trust. "Some partner defalcating, or the like." --Carlyle.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source

Main Entry: de·fal·cate
Pronunciation: di-'fal-"kAt, -'fol-, dE-; 'de-f&l-"kAt
Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Forms: -cat·ed; -cat·ing
: to commit defalcation —compare EMBEZZLE —de·fal·ca·tor /-"kA-t&r/ noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see defalcate on Thesaurus | Reference