malversation

noun

mal·​ver·​sa·​tion ˌmal-vər-ˈsā-shən 

1

: misbehavior and especially corruption in an office, trust, or commission

2

: corrupt administration

Did you know?

The form mal- is often a bad sign in a word, and malversation is no exception. In Middle French, mal- (meaning "bad," from the Latin word for "bad," malus) teamed up with verser ("to turn, handle," from the Latin verb vertere, "to turn ") to create malverser, a verb meaning "to be corrupt." This in turn led to the French noun malversation, which was adopted by English speakers in the mid-16th century. Some other mal- words that entered English from Middle French are maladroit ("inept"), malcontent ("discontented"), and maltreat ("to treat badly").

Examples of malversation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

With the Philippines’ ranking 117th among 180 countries in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index, the public has good reason to fear potential malversation to do with the MIF. —Time, 16 Dec. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Middle French, from malverser to be corrupt, from mal + verser to turn, handle, from Latin versare, frequentative of vertere to turn — more at worth

First Known Use

1549, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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