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 of disburse

• 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

That criticism prompted the finance ministry to publish an update earlier this month showing that about $137 million had already been disbursed to three projects. — Ruben Nyanguila, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026

With home equity loan funds being disbursed via a lump sum, you'll be expected to begin making full repayments almost immediately, too. — Matt Richardson, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026

According to Jason Lloyd of The Athletic, the Buss family trust specified that whenever any of the siblings died, their shares would be equally disbursed among the remaining siblings. — Bryan Toporek, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

As a result, no business has been done by the board in eight months and about $800,000 is tax money earmarked for township mental health services has not been disbursed. — Gloria Casas, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026

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