What does audit mean?
An audit is a systematic, independent examination of records, accounts, or operations, carried out to confirm accuracy, completeness, and compliance with established standards. Most familiar from finance, where external accountants scrutinize a company's books each year, the term has broadened to cover inspections of almost anything — safety procedures, environmental practices, election results, even personal habits. The corresponding verb means both to carry out such an examination and, in academic settings, to sit in on a course informally without earning credit. The tone of the word is formal and institutional; it implies rigor, impartiality, and accountability rather than casual checking. Its etymology is memorable: it comes from the Latin audire, 'to hear,' because early audits were performed by listening to accounts read aloud. Today the auditor listens far more to ledgers than to voices, but the name preserves that ancient practice of accounting by ear.
An official, systematic examination and verification of financial accounts, records, or other documented information, typically conducted by an independent qualified party.
"The annual audit revealed several discrepancies in the expense reports."
Most commonly used in financial, tax, and corporate-governance contexts.
To examine and verify accounts, records, or systems officially and systematically; also, to attend an academic course informally without receiving credit.
"Regulators will audit the bank's lending practices over the past five years."
Regular English plural; used when referring to multiple separate examinations.
"The agency conducts thousands of audits every year."
The word "audit" literally means "a hearing" — in ancient Rome, accounts were checked aloud, so auditors were people who listened to numbers being read.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of audit
Audit derives from the Latin audire, meaning 'to hear', via the Medieval Latin auditus ('a hearing'). In antiquity and the medieval period, official accounts were verified orally — a steward would read the figures aloud so they could be checked by ear — and this practice gave the modern word its form. It entered English in the late Middle Ages through Anglo-Norman French, initially referring specifically to the examination of accounts, and later developed its extended senses of general inspection and informal course attendance. Cognates sharing the same Latin root include audible, audience, audio, and auditorium.
Related word forms
How audit is actually used
In professional and business contexts the word carries a neutral-to-serious connotation: being audited suggests scrutiny but is routine practice. The educational sense of attending a class informally is common in North American higher education and less familiar elsewhere. The verb is regular (audits, audited, auditing).
Easily confused with audit
An audition is a trial performance to assess a candidate's suitability, while an audit is a formal examination of records or accounts.