peculate

verb

Definition of peculatenext
as in to usurp

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for peculate
  1. usurp
  2. embezzle
  3. seize
  4. preempt
  5. appropriate
  6. misuse
  7. arrogate
  8. confiscate
Verb
  • In 2022, the Lab was usurped by the French Bulldog, who kept the most popular title for 2023.
    Kelli Bender, People.com, 31 Oct. 2024
  • While the citizens decide to build a firewall to keep out newcomers (A King and Queen potentially showing up and usurping Prince and Princess?
    David John Chávez, The Mercury News, 30 Oct. 2024
Definition of usurp
Verb
  • The Paris prosecutor on Wednesday requested a five-year prison sentence and a five-year ban from public office against far-right leader Marine Le Pen, at a trial where she and 24 others are accused of embezzling European Union funds.
    Reuters, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
  • Sobs of relief broke out in a federal courtroom in Kansas on Monday as dozens of people whose life savings had been embezzled by a bank CEO learned that federal law enforcement had recovered their money.
    Martha Mendoza, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2024
Definition of embezzle
Verb
  • Six of the firearms seized at his home were legally registered to him.
    Harry Harris, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
  • Democrats want to hold their majority in the Senate and keep Republicans from seizing control.
    The Hill, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2024
Definition of seize
Verb
  • Palmer had worked at Clinton Correctional for 28 years (here’s an NPR story in which Palmer conducted a walking tour of the grounds in the mid-2000s), and by his attorney’s own admission, would exchange favors for information that could help preempt conflicts and violence within the cell blocks.
    Kenny Herzog, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2024
  • That competition was noted by the companies in their announcement in a bid to preempt regulatory questions.
    Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Sep. 2024
Definition of preempt
Verb
  • In biotech, the Biden-Harris administration agreed at the World Trade Organization that countries can void patent protections on the mRNA technology behind the COVID-19 vaccines, essentially inviting China and other hostile nations to appropriate our intellectual property.
    Andrei Iancu, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2024
  • This rapid spending rate means Congress may need to appropriate billions more in disaster funding for the agency earlier than expected.
    Alexandra Banner, CNN, 11 Oct. 2024
Definition of appropriate
Verb
  • Risk factors for systolic heart failure include having a history of smoking, misusing alcohol or drugs, and being overweight or obese.8 Diagnosis Healthcare providers can diagnose systolic congestive heart failure using your medical history, performing a physical exam, and running some tests.
    Alexandria Nyembwe, PhD, RN, Health, 4 Nov. 2024
  • Race and ethnicity are used to categorize Americans often, but according to the report, these categories can be misused in scientific analyses.
    Kaan Ozcan, CNN, 30 Oct. 2024
Definition of misuse
Verb
  • Back before the federal government arrogated to itself an outsize role as financier of college education, the Wayne States of the world were where ambitious people who didn’t have a lot of money, who wanted to save money on college, or both, got their degrees.
    John Tamny, Forbes, 12 Oct. 2024
  • In every period, the essence of politics has been that a tin-pot tsar who wants to arrogate to himself the right to personal, unaccountable power needs to intimidate the honest people who are not afraid of him.
    Alexei Navalny, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2024
Definition of arrogate
Verb
  • In November, 2015, Turkish authorities confiscated nearly eleven million tablets hidden inside a shipment of oil filters headed for the Gulf.
    Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
  • Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers confiscated more than 175 pounds of the drug during a traffic stop involving a Dodge Ram pickup on IH-35 in Webb Country.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
Definition of confiscate
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near peculate

Pecksniffian

peculate

peculated

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Peculate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peculate. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
turkey-looking-at-camera
Giving Thanks Quiz Decide which words express gratitude and which gi...