ledger
English · Thesaurus
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ledger¹
- /ˈlɛd͡ʒə/ UK
- /ˈlɛd͡ʒɚ/ US
Sounds like leger · Rhymes with -ɛdʒə(ɹ)
Where it comes from
From Middle English liggere, ligger, leger (“large breviary; beam, plank; dweller, inhabitant”), from liggen, leggen, variants of līen (“to lie down; to bow, kneel, prostrate; to die; to be located (somewhere); to remain in place, stay”), from Old English liċġan (“to lie down; to be situated”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ- (“to lie down”). The word is cognate with Saterland Frisian Lägger (“floor board, joist, plank”), West Frisian lêger (“beam, plank”), Dutch legger (“daybook; layer”) (from leggen (“to lay”), liggen (“to lie down”)), and is related to English ledge, lie (“to be prostrate”).
The verb is derived from the noun.
noun ledgers · leidger · leiger · leger
- A book for keeping notes; a record book, a register. Our ledger has no entry for the human pain caused by war.
- A book or other scheme for keeping accounting records. The firſt Leidger, or Leidger Nº A. being thus finiſh'd, it is requiſite to prepare for the erecting of thy Accounts anew in a Leidger Nº B. or thy ſecond Leidger, which thou ſhalt do thus.
- A distributed ledger, a public financial transaction database, typically using a blockchain. To be clear: there's only one ledger, but that ledger is not stored in any one central location. Rather, identical copies exist on every node—a copy on every computer.
- A collection of accounting entries consisting of credits and debits. The Leger exhibits at one view the accounts with an individual, as it contains on the Dr. [debit] side whatever he has received, and on the Cr. [credit] side whatever he has paid. […] Let each account be posted from the Day Book in its proper place in the Leger. If a mistake be made, let it be corre
- A large, flat stone, especially one laid over a tomb. In Great Britain ledgers that were placed outside of churches are sometimes termed external ledgers, while those placed within churches are called internal ledgers […] Ledgers generally sit directly on the ground or on low supports.
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A board attached to a wall to provide support for attaching other structural elements (such as deck joists or roof rafters) to a building.
[The dome was] turned upon a centre laid without any standard from below to support it. Every story of the scaffolding being circular, and the ends of the ledgers meeting as so many rings, and truly wrought, it supported itself; […]
Similar: ligger
- Ellipsis of ledger bait (“fishing bait attached to a floating line fastened to the bank of a pond, stream, etc.”) or ledger line (“fishing line used with ledger bait for bottom fishing; ligger”). [W]hen fishing for Eels with a ledger line as well as a floated line, don't be in too much haste to strike when you see a bite, for Eels generally gorge the bait, and consequently hook themselves, if you give them time, […] I always use two hooks on my ledger, placing the top one about two feet abov
verb ledgers · ledgering · ledgered · leger
- To record (something) in, or as if in, a ledger. Our tears are bottled, to signify that our griefs are carefully measured; and they are booked, to teach us that they are numbered.—Psal[ms] lvi. 8. Our tears being bottled, and ledgered, will signify that our afflictions are not the effects of change, but the registered dispensations of heaven. Ay,
- To use (a certain type of bait) in bottom fishing. The added advantage of legering a small bait rather than freelining one is that you can tighten up harder to the bait and so spot runs earlier.
- To engage in bottom fishing. In the fashion pursued by the fishermen who require to cast a long line on the Thames, for ledgering or spinning more particularly, the line is drawn off the reel and laid loosely in coils at the fisherman's feet, […]
Ledger²
Where it comes from
Two possible origins:
* English patronymic surname from either the Norman personal name Leodegar or the Old French equivalent Legier, both containing the Proto-Germanic elements *liudiz (“men, people”) and *garwaz (“ready, prepared”).
* English metonymic occupational surname for a stonemason, from ledger, itself a derivative of Old English leċġan (“to lay”).
proper noun Ledgers
- A surname.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: account book, daybook, book, leger, books, register, accountant, registry, bookkeeping, accounting, accountancy, account, book-keeping, workbook, counting, accountability
Translations
Every language
noun book or other scheme for keeping accounting records
| Kiswahili | leja |
|---|---|
| Français | registre |
| Tiếng Việt | sổ cái |
noun book for keeping notes
| 日本語 | 原簿 genbo, 元帳 motochō, 帳簿 chōbo, 台簿 daibo |
|---|---|
| Français | registre |
| Deutsch | Notizbuch |
noun collection of accounting entries
| Español | libro de contabilidad, libro mayor, dietario |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 總帳 /总帐 zǒngzhàng, 流水簿子 liúshuǐ bùzi |
| हिन्दी | बही bahī |
| Kiswahili | leja |
| Português | canhoto, registro contábil |
| Français | grand livre |
| Deutsch | Hauptbuch, Konto, Kontobuch, Kontoblatt, Wirtschaftsbuch, Bestandsbuch |
| Italiano | registro contabile |
| Ελληνικά | τεφτέρι teftéri |
| Română | registrul mare, registru principal |
| Русский | гроссбу́х grossbúx |
noun large, flat stone, especially one laid over a tomb
| Deutsch | Bodenplatte, Steinplatte, Pflasterplatte, Fußbodenplatte, Grabplatte |
|---|---|
| Italiano | pietra tombale |
noun construction: board attached to a wall to provide support
| Français | longrine, moise |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Konsole, Widerlager, Auflager, Fixpunkt, Querbalken |
| Italiano | traversa |
verb to record (something) in, or as if in, a ledger
| Deutsch | registrieren, auflisten, verbuchen, buchen |
|---|
Talk about this word "ledger." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/ledger. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026. ledger. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/ledger "ledger." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 5, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/ledger.Cite this
@misc{ledger_2026,
title = {ledger},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/ledger},
urldate = {2026-11-05}
}
