accountant

American  

[uh-koun-tnt] / əˈkaʊn tnt /

noun

1. a person whose profession is inspecting and auditing personal or commercial accounts and providing financial advice to the account holders.

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accountant British  

/ əˈkaʊntənt /

noun

1. a person concerned with the maintenance and audit of business accounts and the preparation of consultant reports in tax and finance

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Other Word Forms

• accountantship noun

Etymology

Origin of accountant

First recorded in 1425–75; account + -ant; replacing late Middle English accomptant, from Middle French, Old French acuntant, present participle of acunter “to account ”

Compare meaning

How does accountant compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• actuary vs. accountant

Example Sentences

Born in central Denmark to a stay-at-home mother and a father who was an accountant, he trained to be a lawyer before entering parliament in 1994.

From Barron's

The online blurb says the book is a "darkly humorous novel that uses the deftest touch to draw a thread through the lives of Welsh farmers, city accountants, Indian hoteliers and Eisteddfod mums".

From BBC

Epstein and his accountant continued to use accounts set up for the woman at the bank for years, including one until 2019, the lawsuit alleged.

From The Wall Street Journal

Interacting with an accountant can make you feel uneasy if you grew up in a household devoid of money talk.

From MarketWatch

This account is consistent with testimony given in 2010 to a court in Florida by a former accountant at MC2 in the US - Brunel's model agency - and cited in the Epstein files.

From BBC

Related Words

• actuary
• analyst
• auditor
• bookkeeper
• clerk