passbook

[ pas-boo k, pahs- ]

/ ˈpæsˌbʊk, ˈpɑs- /

a bankbook.

(formerly) a small book or ledger for each customer in which a merchant keeps a record of goods sold on credit and the amounts owed and paid.

South African. reference book(def 2).

Origin of passbook

First recorded in 1820–30; pass + book

The bank had sent her a passbook with that amount to her credit.

The Miracle Man |Frank L. Packard
But he had found in his passbook only this morning that she had already cashed his last cheque for fifty pounds.

From Out the Vasty Deep |Mrs. Belloc Lowndes
He was working out in his mind how handsomely this first payment would show up on the welcome side of his passbook.

The Yellow Claw |Sax Rohmer
Grenier obtained his passbook and check book, after writing a check on London before the other man's eyes.

The King of Diamonds |Louis Tracy

He liked a pleasant object for a walk, so at least once a week he made a point of fetching his passbook from the bank.

War-time Silhouettes |Stephen Hudson

passbook

/ (ˈpɑːsˌbʊk) /

a book for keeping a record of withdrawals from and payments into a building society

another name for bankbook

a customer's book in which is recorded by a trader a list of credit sales to that customer

(formerly in South Africa) an official document serving to identify the bearer, his race, his residence, and his employment