Word Study
defalcation
OXFORD DICTIONARY
defalcation, n. formal 1 Law a a misappropriation of money. b an amount misappropriated.
2 a shortcoming.
3 defection.
2 a shortcoming.
3 defection.
Etymology
ME f. med.L defalcatio (as DEFALCATE)
THESAURUS
defalcation
abuse, abuse of office, arrear, arrearage, arrears, befoulment, break, conversion, corrupt administration, debasement, decline, default, defect, defectiveness, deficiency, deficit, defilement, delinquency, desecration, discontinuity, diversion, embezzlement, failing, failure, falling short, fault, fouling, gap, hiatus, imperfection, inadequacy, inferiority, insufficiency, interval, lack, lacuna, laxness, maladministration, malfeasance, malpractice, malversation, misapplication, misappropriation, misconduct, misemployment, misfeasance, mishandling, mismanagement, missing link, misusage, misuse, need, negligence, omission, outage, paucity, peculation, perversion, pilfering, pollution, poor stewardship, poverty, profanation, prostitution, remissness, scant, scantiness, scarceness, short measure, shortage, shortcoming, shortfall, slackness, slump, ullage, underage, violation, want, wantageROGET THESAURUS
defalcation
Incompleteness
N incompleteness, deficiency, short measure, shortcoming, insufficiency, imperfection, immaturity, half measures, defect, deficit, defalcation, omission, caret, shortage, interval, break, noncompletion, missing link, missing piece, missing part, gap, hole, lacuna, incomplete, imperfect, unfinished, uncompleted &c (complete), defective, deficient, wanting, lacking, failing, in default, in arrear, short of, hollow, meager, lame, halfand-half, perfunctory, sketchy, crude, mutilated, garbled, docked, lopped, truncated, in progress, in hand, going on, proceeding, incompletely, by halves, caetera desunt, caret.Nonpayment
N nonpayment, default, defalcation, protest, repudiation, application of the sponge, whitewashing, insolvency, bankruptcy, failure, insufficiency, run upon a bank, overdrawn account, waste paper bonds, dishonored bills, protested bills, bogus check, bogus cheque, rubber check, bankrupt, insolvent, debtor, lame duck, man of straw, welsher, stag, defaulter, levanter, not paying, non-paying, non-performing, in debt, behindhand, in arrear, behind in payments, in arrears, beggared, unable to make both ends meet, minus, worse than nothing, worthless, insolvent, bankrupt, in the gazette, gazetted, unpaid, gratis, unremunerated.Contraction
N contraction, reduction, diminution, decrease of size, defalcation, decrement, lessening, shrinking, compaction, tabes, collapse, emaciation, attenuation, tabefaction, consumption, marasmus, atrophy, systole, neck, hourglass, condensation, compression, compactness, compendium, squeezing, strangulation, corrugation, astringency, astringents, sclerotics, contractility, compressibility, coarctation, inferiority in size, contracting, astringent, shrunk, contracted, strangulated, tabid, wizened, stunted, waning, neap, compact, unexpanded &c (expand), contractile, compressible, smaller &c (small).Shortcoming
N shortcoming, failure, falling short, default, defalcation, leeway, labor in vain, no go, incompleteness, imperfection, insufficiency, noncompletion, failure, unreached, deficient, short, short of, minus, out of depth, perfunctory, within the mark, within the compass, within the bounds, behindhand, re infecta, to no purpose, for from it, the bubble burst.For further exploring for "defalcation" in Webster Dictionary Online