comptroller
noun
Did you know?
If you think "comptroller" looks like a mistaken spelling of "controller," you're partially right. Today, "comptroller" is an established word that shares one of its meanings (sense 3) with "controller." The term did originate as a misspelling, however. Around the 15th century, Middle English speakers altered the spelling of "conterroller" (meaning "controller," from the Middle French contrerolleur) under the influence of the Middle French word compte ("account"). The resulting word, "comptroller," has attracted criticism over the years. Grammarian Henry Fowler condemned "comptroller" as "not merely archaic, but erroneous" in 1920, and a lexicographical column from 1931 agreed that "comptroller" is "erroneous and should not be accepted as correct." Nevertheless, such modern institutions as colleges and governments continue to have comptrollers. "Comptrollership" occasionally turns up as well.
Examples of comptroller in a Sentence
Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 23 July 2024
The Baltimore Sun requested 2023 salary data from the Maryland comptroller’s office through the state’s Public Information Act.
—Lilly Price, Baltimore Sun, 19 July 2024
This week, New York City’s comptroller published a similar audit of the city’s ShotSpotter system showing that only 13 percent of the alerts the system generated over an eight-month period could be confirmed as gunfire.
—Todd Feathers, WIRED, 25 June 2024
Maryland taxes nonmedical marijuana sales at a rate of 9%, and netted $41.4 million in revenue in the first nine months of legalized recreational cannabis, according to the state comptroller’s office.
—Dan Belson, Baltimore Sun, 1 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for comptroller 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'comptroller.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near comptroller
Cite this Entry
“Comptroller.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/comptroller. Accessed 30 Jul. 2024.
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comptroller
noun
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Legal Definition
comptroller
noun
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