cheque
/tʃɛk
/(US check)
noun
An order to a bank to pay a stated sum from the drawer’s account, written on a specially printed form: they presented him with a cheque for £4,000 fees are payable by cheque or postal order...
- A bank that presents a cheque for payment on its customer's behalf acts as an agent.
- Recently, my neighbour wrote me a cheque for her half of the cost of replacing our mutual boundary fence.
- Credit card cheques look almost exactly the same as ordinary bank account cheques.
Origin
Early 18th century (originally denoting a counterfoil, or a form with a counterfoil): variant of check1, in the sense 'device for checking the amount of an item'.