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audit Meaning & Definition

ˈȯ-dət

What Does Audit Mean?

Audit is a noun that means a formal examination of an organization's or individual's accounts or financial situation. It can also mean the final report of an audit. As a verb, it means to perform an audit of or for.

Audit at a Glance

Part of speechnoun, verb
Pronunciation/ˈȯ-dət/
Syllables2
Synonymsscrutinize, inspect and audited account
Antonymsskim, glance (at or over) and miss

Audit Definition (Noun)

  1. a formal examination of an organization's or individual's accounts or financial situation

    The audit showed that the company had misled investors.

  2. the final report of an audit
  3. a methodical examination and review

    an energy audit of the house

Audit as a Verb

  1. to perform an audit of or for

    audit the books / audit the company

  2. to attend (a course) without working for or expecting to receive formal credit

    audited a foreign language course

Synonyms of Audit

Audit synonyms and antonyms →

Antonyms of Audit

Audit in a Sentence

National Assembly audit

to audit the accounts of a treasure, or of parties who have a suit depending in court

The audit showed that the company had misled investors.

an energy audit of the house

audit the books

audit the company

audited a foreign language course

an energy audit of our house showed that we were losing lots of heat and needed to upgrade the insulation

audited the equipment to make sure that everything was in working order

audit the books / audit the company

Word Forms & Grammar

audit

audits

au·dit·ed

au·dit·ing

au·dits

au·dit·abil·i·ty noun

au·dit·able adjective

au·dit·ee noun

auditabilities

auditability

auditable

audited

auditee

auditees

auditing

Origin of Audit

Origin 1: Middle English audyte "examination of accounts, judicial hearing," borrowed from Medieval Latin audītus "sense of hearing, act of listening, right to judicial hearing, examination of accounts," going back to Latin, "sense or act of hearing," from audīre "to hear" + -tus, suffix of action nouns audible:1

Origin 2: Middle English audyten, derivative of audyte audit:1; in sense 2 back-formation from auditor

First Known Use

15th century

How to Pronounce Audit

Audit is pronounced /ˈȯ-dət/ and has 2 syllables, with the main stress on the first syllable (ȯ).

Frequently Asked Questions About Audit

Is audit a noun or a verb?

Audit is mainly used as a noun, but it can also be used as a verb.

What is another word for audit?

Words with a similar meaning to audit include scrutinize, inspect and audited account. See the full list of audit synonyms and antonyms.

What is the opposite of audit?

The opposite of audit can be expressed with words like skim, glance (at or over) and miss.

More About Audit On Meaning Stash

More Words Starting With “Aud”

Merriam-WebsterReference content from Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary and Collegiate® Thesaurus © Merriam-Webster Inc.Data credits & licensing