Verb: defalcate di'fal,keyt or 'de-ful,keyt [N. Amer], 'dee,fal,keyt or 'de-ful,keyt [Brit]
- Appropriate (as property entrusted to one's care) fraudulently to one's own use
"The accountant defalcated thousands of dollars while working for the wealthy family";
- embezzle, peculate, misappropriate, malversate [archaic]
Derived forms: defalcated, defalcates, defalcating
Type of: rip [N. Amer, informal], rip off [informal], steal
Encyclopedia: Defalcate