disburse

verb

dis·​burse dis-ˈbərs 

disbursed; disbursing

transitive verb

1

a

: to pay out : expend especially from a fund

disburse money

b

: to make a payment in settlement of

disburse a bill

2

: distribute

disburser noun

Synonyms

• pay
• spend
• give

Examples of disburse in a Sentence

The money will be disbursed on the basis of need.

The government has disbursed millions of dollars in foreign aid.

Recent Examples on the Web

The payments will be disbursed in installments over four years. —Jason Lemon, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Aug. 2025

If the friends group cannot raise sufficient donor dollars, the county will not disburse the funding. —Vanessa Swales, jsonline.com, 30 July 2025

In addition, transfers and payments were disbursed from one account, including $45,086.65 in vehicle payments to Audi Finance. —Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2025

According to the nonprofit OpenSecrets, which tracks money in politics, the N.R.A., during the 2024 election cycle, disbursed nearly a million dollars to various PACs, party committees, and candidates, money that flowed to both Democrats and Republicans. —Eyal Press, New Yorker, 28 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French desbourser, from Old French desborser, from des- dis- + borse purse, from Medieval Latin bursa

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for disburse

• adverse
• averse
• coerce
• disperse
• diverse
• immerse
• inverse
• obverse
• perverse
• rehearse
• reverse
• transverse

Kids Definition

disburse

verb

dis·​burse dis-ˈbərs 

disbursed; disbursing

: to pay out : expend

disburse money

disburser noun

Etymology

from early French desbourser "to pay out money," from des- "out, away" and borse "a purse," from Latin bursa "a small leather bag" — related to purse, reimburse