peculated

verb

past tense of peculate
as in took over

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for peculated
  1. took over
  2. embezzled
  3. misused
  4. appropriated
  5. preempted
  6. usurped
  7. misappropriated
  8. attached
Verb
  • For the first four games of the season, Ovechkin took a back seat as the Washington Capitals’ depth took over.
    — Danielle Allentuck, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2026
  • When Harmeet Dhillon took over as the new chief of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division last April, the conservative attorney vowed to radically reshape the storied unit and its mission.
    — Ryan Lucas, NPR, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of took over
Verb
  • The government is attempting to improve shattered services and open up an economy closed by the corrupt Assad regime, which ran the economy with an iron fist and embezzled billions for the Assad clan and their allies.
    — Taylor Luck, Christian Science Monitor, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Wilson also alleged Cameron and Holden embezzled 900,000 Australian dollars ($642,000) from a joint venture company set up to make the movie.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of embezzled
Verb
  • Is there a more prolifically misused major star today than Pedro Pascal?
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Though one senses her powers of persuasion are being misused at this corporate advertising agency.
    — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of misused
Verb
  • Chicago Public Schools should fight for every dollar Springfield owes us, while refusing to make promises to families based on money that has not actually been appropriated.
    — Claire Malon, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The deep state had appropriated their opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood, redeploying it as justification for the massacre.
    — Abdelrahman ElGendy, Time, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of appropriated
Verb
  • The companies argue that the local claims are preempted by federal laws such as the Clean Air Act.
    — Callie Patteson, The Washington Examiner, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Consider ongoing litigation between state governments and prediction-market companies, where the two sides are debating whether states are preempted from enforcing their gambling laws by a federal law on prediction markets.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of preempted
Verb
  • But by the end of the movie, Verity is dead and her publishing empire has been usurped by her ghostwriter.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Jason Speaking of football-loving families, the Kelces seem to have usurped the Mannings for the sport’s first family.
    — Beth Ann Mayer, Parents, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of usurped
Verb
  • Court findings, shared in 2025, showed that nearly 72% of the sheriff’s office spending was misattributed or misappropriated.
    — Yana Kunichoff, ProPublica, 18 Sep. 2026
  • That’s one reason there are so many arguments over the value of a team, or an athlete, or sports more generally, as more and more money chases something essentially priceless—or misappropriated, depending on your view.
    — Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of misappropriated
Verb
  • We are told Hat Trick Mercurio (HTM), the production company Mercurio runs with Hat Trick founder Jimmy Mulville, has submitted a proposal with Mercurio attached as an executive producer.
    — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Although the Mitchell film Seyfried was attached to was nixed, director Cameron Crowe is behind another project, in which Meryl Streep is set to star as Mitchell in the later years of her life.
    — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of attached
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.

Browse Nearby Words

peculate
peculated
peculates
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Peculated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peculated. Accessed 13 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of abscond

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Why do we call it a 'flea market'?
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

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 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?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All