accountant
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
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:
Explanation
An accountant is a person whose job involves keeping financial records for a business. To be a great accountant, you've got to be good at math. When a company hires an accountant, it turns over the management of its accounts to that person, who is responsible for keeping track of spending, income, and any other financial information. An accountant is also held accountable for the accuracy of a company's books, and usually has to be officially certified before working in the field. The word comes from account, by way of the Old French aconter, "to count."
Vocabulary lists containing accountant
Tax Day Words
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Exemptions, Deductions, and Loopholes: Tax Day Vocabulary
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"Growing Together" and "When I Grow Up"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Ivan Lamptey, an accountant in Sacramento, Calif., leaves home at 5 a.m. five days a week to drive about 120 miles each way to work in Fremont, a city in the San Francisco Bay Area.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
Ma is a certified public accountant serving as state treasurer.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
It’s great that you have two professionals in place: your accountant who focuses on tax compliance, and an investment adviser tasked with portfolio management and investing.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 27, 2026
His accountant father never showed any interest, he said, but his schoolteacher mother, Ella, “read it all,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026
Its construction had been overseen by an accountant, not an engineer, who did not know how to read a blueprint.
From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
