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ledger

noun
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led·​ger | \ ˈle-jər How to pronounce ledger (audio) \

Definition of ledger

1 : a book containing accounts to which debits and credits are posted from books of original entry
2 : a horizontal board used for vertical support (as in scaffolding)

Examples of ledger in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Big changes in 2020 also took place on the other side of the ledger: spending. — Weiyi Cai, New York Times, "Why Markets Boomed in a Year of Human Misery," 1 Jan. 2021 The Stars would have also added salary expenditures to owner Tom Gaglardi’s ledger in a year when his hospitality businesses have been damaged by the coronavirus pandemic. — Matthew Defranks, Dallas News, "Stephen Johns, LTIR, and options for the Dallas Stars if the defenseman doesn’t play this season," 30 Dec. 2020 On the other side of the ledger, America’s influence on global health policy and governance would have been eroded. — Helen Branswell, STAT, "3 global health issues to watch in 2021," 29 Dec. 2020 The computer that solves the problem broadcasts the solution to others on the network and, in doing so, adds a block to the blockchain—a tamperproof ledger that serves as a public record of transactions. — Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, "The American heartland needs jobs. Could Bitcoin mining become its next savior?," 12 Dec. 2020 That ledger of transactions is widely distributed across multiple parties (not centralized) and is seen as being highly resistant to hacking and forgery. — John Detrixhe, Quartz, "The simple reason DocuSign doesn’t use blockchain," 7 Dec. 2020 Former Arkansas receiver Drew Morgan lived on the other side of that ledger, never beating the Aggies in his career from 2013-16. — Tom Murphy, Arkansas Online, "Eight not so great: Hogs look to end Aggies’ current run," 31 Oct. 2020 But the task force also is recommending changes on the other side of the ledger that would increase the amount of money the state collects. — Christine Sexton, sun-sentinel.com, "Give businesses immunity from COVID lawsuits, task force tells Florida legislators in 2021 wish list," 2 Dec. 2020 Her leather satchel bounced at her hip, her ledger safe inside. — Ew Staff, EW.com, "First look: Realm Breaker is your next YA fantasy obsession," 1 Dec. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ledger.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of ledger

1588, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for ledger

Middle English lygger, leger large breviary, beam, probably from leyen, leggen to lay

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Time Traveler for ledger

Time Traveler

The first known use of ledger was in 1588

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Statistics for ledger

Last Updated

15 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Ledger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ledger. Accessed 17 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for ledger

ledger

noun
How to pronounce ledger (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of ledger

: a book that a company uses to record information about the money it has paid and received

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More from Merriam-Webster on ledger

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for ledger

Nglish: Translation of ledger for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of ledger for Arabic Speakers

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