ledger

noun

led·​ger ˈle-jər 

plural ledgers

1

a

: a book containing accounts to which debits and credits are posted from books of original entry

Psmith, perched gracefully on a stool, entered figures in a ledger.

—P. G. Wodehouse

b

: a digital record that is used similarly to an accounting ledger (as for maintaining a list of transactions)

Williams said he also recovered a ledger spreadsheet on a laptop computer seized from Wright and a "key" to translate the ledger.

—Scott Dolan

specifically : blockchain

NFTs use blockchain, the technology ledger backing cryptocurrencies …, which are databases of linked information to record ownership or transactions of a product.

—Weston Blasi

The original idea behind Provenance was to provide transparency, proof of loan performance, provenance—reliable information about who owned or owns an asset at any given time—lower costs and easier audits for loan buyers and sellers through distributed ledger technology.

—Penny Crosman

2

: a horizontal board used for vertical support (as in scaffolding)

I'd rather see joists resting on a ledger, spiked to the girders or to the house through spacers.

—Jim Locke

Examples of ledger in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On the other side of the ledger, Jaguar did a stupid, and seriously WOKE advertisement, THAT IS A TOTAL DISASTER! —Megan Cartwright, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Aug. 2025

The news has produced plenty of debate on social media, with one side insisting the Paramount needs to pay its own way, and others noting that, while budgets need to be adhered to, there are intangibles surrounding some things that go beyond a business ledger. —Denise Crosby, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2025

Visitors can see old-time pharmacy items including mortars and pestles and other items used to compound or mix drugs, as well as scales, signs, prescriptions, bottles, vials, ledgers, advertising promotions, drug containers and more. —Shawn Hardy, USA Today, 25 July 2025

If all of these things seem correct, a historian would then look into other documents, such as previous appraisals or the plantation’s accounting ledger, which might be housed in the same collection or might be in another archive. —The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 15 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

1588, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing ledger

• ledger line

Rhymes for ledger

• dredger
• edger
• hedger

Kids Definition

ledger

noun

led·​ger ˈlej-ər 

: a book in which accounts are kept in final form