disburse

verb

dis·​burse dis-ˈbərs How to pronounce disburse (audio)
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
disburser noun

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
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.
Finally, on the off-chance a grant decision is well-made (hey, a broken clock is right twice a day!), the mechanics of disbursing grant funding can be cumbersome. Ryan Craig, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024 About $140,000 was raised for the family before donations stopped being accepted so the money could be disbursed, the Sikh society wrote. Adam Carlson, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024 Whenever additional funding is provided, the agency should be able to disburse loan funds quickly. Doug Criscitello, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024 Anyone signing the document has to enter their full name, address of residence, email contact, and mobile phone number into a database, information his America PAC will then verify before disbursing any cash. Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for disburse 

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of disburse was in 1530

Dictionary Entries Near disburse

Cite this Entry

“Disburse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disburse. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

disburse

verb
dis·​burse dis-ˈbərs How to pronounce disburse (audio)
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

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