audit

1 of 2

noun

au·​dit ˈȯ-dət 

1

a

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

The audit showed that the company had misled investors.

b

: the final report of an audit

2

: a methodical examination and review

an energy audit of the house

audit

2 of 2

verb

audited; auditing; audits

transitive 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

auditability

ˌȯ-də-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

auditable

ˌȯ-di-tə-bəl 

adjective

auditee

ˌȯ-də-ˈtē 

noun

Synonyms of audit

Noun

• inspection
• examination
• survey
• scrutiny

Verb

• review
• survey
• examine
• scan
• inspect

Examples of audit in a Sentence

Noun

The Internal Revenue Service selected us for an audit.

You will need all your records if you are selected for audit by the IRS.

Verb

They audit the company books every year.

The Internal Revenue Service audited him twice in 10 years.

I audited an English literature class last semester.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

While a state review of the county's audit of the 2020 presidential race found errors and inconsistencies in the vote count, including some double-counting of ballots, the review said the errors weren't enough to alter the election results. —Dan Raby, CBS News, 15 Dec. 2025

All of this is worth a deeper audit in the weeks to come, something in which the Chiefs no doubt are engaging already. —Kansas City Star, 14 Dec. 2025

Verb

Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, an interfaith group advocating for energy efficiency, audited the church's power use. —Alexa Liacko, CBS News, 8 Dec. 2025

As if shutting the government down in the name of health insurance subsidies wasn’t enough, a federal judge took an axe to another meaningful way to reform American health policy – auditing bad actors in Medicare Advantage. —Juliette Madrigal, Boston Herald, 7 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

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 — more at audible entry 1

Note: The sense "examination of accounts," attested relatively late in Medieval Latin, is based on the word audītor, which in the meaning "one who examines accounts" is recorded much earlier—see auditor.

Verb

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

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing audit

• audit trail

Rhymes for audit

• caudate

Kids Definition

audit

1 of 2 noun

au·​dit ˈȯd-ət 

1

: a thorough check of accounts especially of a business

2

: a careful check or review

an energy audit of our house

audit

2 of 2 verb

: to make an audit of

Legal Definition

audit

noun

au·​dit ˈȯ-dət 

: a formal examination of financial records often to uncover fraud or inaccurate tax returns

also : the final report of such an examination

audit verb