auditor

noun

au·​di·​tor ˈȯ-də-tər 

1

: a person authorized to examine and verify accounts

2

: one who hears or listens

especially : one who is a member of an audience

3

: a person who audits a course of study

4

: a person who hears something (such as a court case) in the capacity of judge

Did you know?

The auditing of a company's financial records by independent examiners on a regular basis is necessary to prevent "cooking the books", and thus to keep the company honest. We don't normally think of auditors as listening, since looking at and adding up numbers is their basic line of work, but auditors do have to listen to people's explanations, and perhaps that's the historical link. Hearing is more obviously part of another meaning of audit, the kind that college students do when they sit in on a class without taking exams or receiving an official grade.

Examples of auditor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That number marks a 53% increase from 2013, according to the California auditor’s report released on Tuesday. —Thao Nguyen, USA TODAY, 11 Apr. 2024

Upon the completion of the BCI probe, the Akron Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards and Accountability will conduct a separate internal investigation, which will be shared with the chief and the independent police auditor for their review. —Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 9 Apr. 2024

Deficiencies Found Congress created the PCAOB to oversee the work of auditors and restore investor confidence in corporate accounting, tapping the Securities and Exchange Commission to appoint its members. —Lydia Beyoud, Fortune, 8 Apr. 2024

Kelly received the cancer diagnosis two years ago amid her run for auditor. —Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 4 Apr. 2024

But it won’t be joined by a companion measure that would reinstate the auditor’s ability to issue subpoenas when auditing city contractors or partner agencies. —Joe Rubino, The Denver Post, 3 Apr. 2024

An auditors’ report in 2020 found that the Georgia Department of Economic Development had inaccurately nearly doubled the economic impact of the film tax credit while also reporting misleading job data. —Matt Stevens, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024

The center, which was the EB-5 office within the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, had competing duties: to market and promote EB-5 projects and to regulate them, the auditor's report states. —Lisa Rathke, Quartz, 29 Mar. 2024

From 2019 to 2024, the records reviewed by CBS News showed that auditors checked 84 postal facilities for issues related to securing their arrow keys. —Nick Devlin, CBS News, 2 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English auditour "hearer, listener, official who examines and verifies accounts," borrowed from Anglo-French auditur, auditour, borrowed from Medieval Latin audītor "hearer, hearer of pleas (in court or Parliament), official who examines accounts," going back to Latin, "hearer, listener, disciple," from audīre "to hear" + -tor, agent suffix — more at audible entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

auditor

noun

au·​di·​tor ˈȯd-ət-ər 

1

: a person who listens to or hears something or someone

especially : a member of an audience

2

: a person who audits accounts

Legal Definition

auditor

noun

au·​di·​tor ˈȯ-də-tər 

1

: a person qualified and authorized to examine and verify financial records

2

: a referee appointed by a court in a civil action

especially : one designated to prepare an account for the court see also master