Preaudits

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Examines financial records or spending in advance, before a payment or transaction is approved
2. Checks the accounts or expenses ahead of time, so that errors are caught before money is released
3. Reviews a budget or set of transactions beforehand to confirm they are accurate and authorized

Etymology: "Preaudits" is the third-person singular form of "preaudit," a verb meaning to examine accounts or expenditures before they are approved or paid, rather than after the fact. The verb is formed from the prefix "pre-," meaning "before," attached to "audit," so the whole word simply means to audit beforehand. The "-s" ending is the ordinary present-tense marking for a verb used with "he," "she," or "it," so "preaudits" describes an office or system that checks accounts in advance.