peculate

/ˌpɛkjəˈleɪt/

Other forms: peculating; peculated; peculates

If you embezzle, especially if you steal public funds for your own private use, then you peculate that money. To peculate is, of course, illegal — if you're caught, you can serve jail time.

Peculate comes from the Latin word peculium, meaning private property, which itself has the root pecu, or cattle, so the literal meaning of peculium is "property in cattle." Cattle were considered very valuable property in ancient times, and stealing them was a grave act. Other words that have pecu at their roots include "peculiar" and "pecuniary." Despite the extremely similar spelling, the word "speculate" has totally different roots that have nothing to do with either cattle or embezzlement.

Definitions of peculate

1. verb

   appropriate (as property entrusted to one's care) fraudulently for one's own use
   synonyms: defalcate, embezzle, malversate, misappropriate

   types:

   fiddle

   commit fraud and steal from one's employer

   type of:

   steal

   take without the owner's consent