Cheque
/tʃek/noun
A written order directing a bank to pay money from an account.
Did you know?“Cheque” and “check” both trace back to the same Persian-rooted word for a king being trapped in chess, and that idea of a sudden “halt” later traveled into finance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*skei-
“to cut, split”
Persian
Persian
shāh
“king”
Arabic
Arabic
šāh
“king (via chess terminology in transmission)”
Old French
Old French
eschequier
“to check, block, or put in check in chess”
Middle English
English
cheke
“a check or restraint; later a bank draft”
Modern English
English
cheque
“a written order to a bank to pay money”