What does accompt mean?
"Accompt" is an obsolete English spelling of "account," used from roughly the sixteenth through the eighteenth centuries before the shorter, phonetically truer form prevailed. Like its modern counterpart, it served as both noun and verb: as a noun, an accompt was a record of sums received and spent — the ledgers of merchants, stewards, and treasurers — or, more broadly, a narrative report or explanation of events and conduct. As a verb, to accompt was to reckon, calculate, or render an accounting of oneself. The elaborate spelling arose from a mistaken belief that the word derived directly from Latin computare ('to calculate'), when it had in fact entered English through Old French aconter. Today the word survives only in historical documents, early printed books, and scholarly editions, where encountering it signals that one is reading the bookkeeping or correspondence of another era rather than living English usage.
A record or statement of money received and expended; also, a report or narrative account of events or conduct.
"He laid before Parliament a full accompt of the monies raised for the war."
Obsolete spelling of 'account'; encountered only in historical texts.
To reckon, calculate, or consider; to give a reckoning or explanation of.
"She was required to accompt for every shilling entrusted to her office."
Obsolete; always replace with 'account' in modern writing.
Used in historical financial contexts, e.g. auditors examining a merchant's accompts.
"The auditors spent weeks verifying the company's accompts for the previous decade."
"Accompt" isn't a separate word at all — it's just "account" wearing its 16th-century spelling costume, kept alive for centuries by people who thought the extra letters looked more learned.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of accompt
"Accompt" entered English in the sixteenth century as a learned respelling of the earlier form "accompte/acount," reflecting the belief that the word came straight from Latin computare, 'to calculate.' In reality the word arrived via Old French aconter (from à + conter, 'to count'), so the fuller spelling was etymologically misguided even if long-lived. It remained in common use into the eighteenth century alongside the simpler "account," which ultimately became standard. Its relatives — count, compute, recount, counter — all descend from the same Latin root computare/putare family.
Related word forms
How accompt is actually used
Strictly historical and obsolete in modern English; found only in older texts, legal-historical documents, and scholarly quotations. It carries no meaning distinct from 'account' — any modern use would be affected or pedantic. The spelling reflects an attempt to trace the word to Latin 'computare', though it actually arrived via Old French 'aconter'.
Easily confused with accompt
"Account" is the standard modern spelling and word; "accompt" is merely an obsolete variant spelling of the very same word, not a different term.
Despite a similar opening, an accomplice is a person who helps another commit a crime, whereas an accompt is a record of money or dealings.