embezzle
/ɪmˈbɛz.əl/verb
embezzle is spelled E-M-B-E-Z-Z-L-E: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 93,703rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, embezzle means “To steal or misappropriate money that one has been trusted with, especially to steal money from the organisation for which one works” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in embezzle?
| Letters | 8: E-M-B-E-Z-Z-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 10 million words; the 93,703rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is embezzle?
Embezzle appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 93,703rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce embezzle?
- UK /ɪmˈbɛz.əl/
- US /ɪmˈbɛz.əl/
- US /ɛmˈbɛz.əl/
Embezzle has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-US_embezzle.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Jjamesryan-embezzle.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with embezzle?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as embezzle from its last stressed vowel (/ɛzəl/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of embezzle
- embezzles present, singular, he/she/it
- embezzling participle, present
- embezzled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does embezzle mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To steal or misappropriate money that one has been trusted with, especially to steal money from the organisation for which one works.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Embezzle in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to steal money that one has been trusted with:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | détourner, divertir |
| German | unterschlagen, veruntreuen |
| Portuguese | desviar |
| Spanish | malversar, desfalcar, defalcar, festinar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does embezzle come from?
From Middle English embesilen, from Anglo-Norman embesiler, embesillier, embeseillier (“to steal, cause to disappear”), from em- + Old French besillier (“to torment, destroy, gouge”), of unknown origin.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).