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• ledger
  ledger

  noun

  an account book or digital file of final entry, in which business transactions are recorded.
• Ledger
  Ledger

  noun

  Heath(cliffe) Andrew . 1979–2008, Australian film actor. His films include The Patriot (2000), A Knight's Tale (2001) and Brokeback Mountain (2005)

ledger

American  

[lej-er] / ˈlɛdʒ ɛr /

noun

• ledgers
  plural

1. Bookkeeping. an account book or digital file of final entry, in which business transactions are recorded.

   The Controller must oversee, review, and approve of all posting of financial activity into the General Ledger.

2. Computers. a decentralized public database of permanent records of financial transactions, distributed over a network and typically having the form of a blockchain, used especially in cryptocurrency systems.

   When users send or receive a payment in bitcoin, network nodes verify the transaction and then record it in a shared public ledger.

3. Building Trades.

   1. a horizontal board attached to a wall to support the ends of the joists of another structure such as a deck, porch, roof, etc..

      As the cause of the porch’s collapse, the inspector cited a ledger attached with improper screws.

   2. (in scaffolding) a horizontal board or metal tube attached to uprights, either to support the ends of the boards of a platform or for use as a handrail.

      Arrange the ledgers so the platforms slope slightly outwards, carrying rain away from the face of the building.

   3. ribbon.

4. Also called ledger stone. a flat slab of stone laid over a grave or tomb.

   I had a Bible verse engraved on his ledger, ending with the words “Rest in peace.”

5. Angling, Chiefly British. Also leger a lead sinker with a hole in one end through which the line passes, enabling the bait and the sinker to rest on the bottom and allowing the fish to take the bait without detecting the sinker.

   If fishing for bass in particular, the ledger is preferred.

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ledger ¹ British  

/ ˈlɛdʒə /

noun

1. accounting the principal book in which the commercial transactions of a company are recorded

2. a flat horizontal slab of stone

3. a horizontal scaffold pole fixed to two upright poles for supporting the outer ends of putlogs

4. angling

   1. a wire trace that allows the weight to rest on the bottom and the bait to float freely

   2. ( as modifier )

      ledger tackle

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verb

1. (intr) angling to fish using a ledger

Ledger ² British  

/ ˈlɛdʒə /

noun

1. Heath(cliffe) Andrew . 1979–2008, Australian film actor. His films include The Patriot (2000), A Knight's Tale (2001) and Brokeback Mountain (2005)

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• ledgers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of ledger

First recorded in 1475–85; earlier legger “book,” probably equivalent to legg(en) “to set down, lay” + -er noun suffix; see lay ¹, -er ¹, ledge

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Explanation

A ledger is kind of like a diary, but for money. It's a book for keeping track of expenses, profits, and other financial matters. A ledger is an accounting journal used to keep track of money. Businesses — or their accountants — keep careful ledgers so they know how much money is coming in and going out. If you've ever heard the expression "cook the books" — meaning cheat financially by making things up — the "books" are ledgers. If you like numbers and money, maybe you should become an accountant so you can help people with their ledgers.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ledger Ledger ledgers

Tokenized stocks trade on the blockchain, the ledger system that underpins cryptocurrencies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

The thing that once arrived as part of the welcome now joins the same mental ledger as everything else: Drinks?

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

The task of determining which expenses fall on what side of the ledger would belong to the state attorney general.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

They salvaged a point, or three, on other days, but they were on the wrong side of the ledger on so many occasions.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

I struck the ledger with two fingers, hard.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss

—Katherine Hamilton and Elias Schisgall contributed to today’s Ledger.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

She covered New York politics as an intern for City & State NY, was a community editor for the Queens Ledger and Brooklyn Downtown Star, and covered education for WHYY.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Jim Willse, editor of the Star-Ledger in Newark, N.J., from 1995 until 2010, said he would give “us all the resources we needed to make the Ledger really special.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss., told this story last year: When the future Chargers wideoout was 6, his mother signed him up for flag football in Texas.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 25, 2026

“It was an expression of utmost indifference,” a reporter for the Philadelphia Public Ledger said.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

Dr Helen Paul, an economic historian at the University of Southampton, was one of the experts brought in to decipher 18th Century ledgers.

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026

During her morning news conference, she seemed to mock some of the U.S. evidence, including hand-written ledgers allegedly denoting payoffs to Mexican politicians.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026

Iranian importers and exporters then trade foreign currency among their various front companies on ledgers maintained in Iran.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

BVNK’s infrastructure bridges fiat currency with stablecoins, which are dollar-pegged tokens traded on blockchain ledgers.

From Barron's ● Mar. 17, 2026

I think of Amber's desk next to mine in our lesson room at home: her quill, ink pot, and handwriting ledgers.

From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton

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