passbook

American  

[pas-book, pahs-] / ˈpæsˌbʊk, ˈpɑs- /

noun

1. a bankbook.

2. (formerly) a small book or ledger for each customer in which a merchant keeps a record of goods sold on credit and the amounts owed and paid.

3. South African. reference book.

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passbook British  

/ ˈpɑːsˌbʊk /

noun

1. a book for keeping a record of withdrawals from and payments into a building society

2. another name for bankbook

3. a customer's book in which is recorded by a trader a list of credit sales to that customer

4. (formerly in South Africa) an official document serving to identify the bearer, his race, his residence, and his employment

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Etymology

Origin of passbook

First recorded in 1820–30; pass + book

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

passbook

For Dell, the concept took him back to his childhood in 1970s Houston, where his mother was a stockbroker and where he received a passbook savings account at age 8.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026

But the bank’s blue passbook also gave Roy dignity, a sense of being part of society, a feeling of equality with other Indians, and the power to make her own decisions.

From The Guardian ● Dec. 6, 2017

Early in the novel we learn that one day during Anna’s adolescence, Eddie vanished, leaving behind an envelope of cash and the passbook for a previously undisclosed bank account.

From Slate ● Oct. 10, 2017

Mike now wants to "close the circle" and give back the lifesaving passbook to the family.

From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2014

Instead of putting the rest in my savings passbook, I gave Vonetta the other two quarters to put away for the concert.

From "P.S. Be Eleven" by Rita Williams-Garcia

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