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

If voters approve the change, then the line of succession would start with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, go next to the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, then the state treasurer, the state auditor, and lastly the secretary of state. —Caroline Beck, The Indianapolis Star, 6 Nov. 2024

Question 1 — Auditing the legislature: Approval would allow the state auditor to examine the legislature's financial books. —Jeff Weiner, Axios, 5 Nov. 2024

Currently, the state superintendent is last in the line of succession, behind the president pro tem of the state Senate, the speaker of the state House of Representatives, the state treasurer, the state auditor and the secretary of state. —Emma Whitford, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024

In the past, auditors found deficiencies and, in some cases, substandard conditions in contractor-run detention facilities and shelters. —Nick Penzenstadler, USA TODAY, 31 Oct. 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