One of the directors had been cooking the books and the firm had been losing money for years.
(usually in continuous tenses)New idioms dictionary. 2014.
cook the books — (informal) To falsify accounts, etc • • • Main Entry: ↑cook * * * cook the books phrase to change accounts and figures dishonestly, usually in order to get money Thesaurus: accounts, accountancy and accountantshypernym types of tax and taxation … Useful english dictionary
cook the books — If people cook the books, they keep false accounts to make money illegally or avoid paying tax … The small dictionary of idiomes
cook the books — Book Book (b[oo^]k), n. [OE. book, bok, AS. b[=o]c; akin to Goth. b[=o]ka a letter, in pl. book, writing, Icel. b[=o]k, Sw. bok, Dan. bog, OS. b[=o]k, D. boek, OHG. puoh, G. buch; and fr. AS. b[=o]c, b[=e]ce, beech; because the ancient Saxons and … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
cook the books — To deliberately falsify the financial statements of a company. This is an illegal practice. Bloomberg Financial Dictionary * * * cook the books INFORMAL ► to give false information in a company s accounts in order to gain an advantage: »By… … Financial and business terms
Cook The Books — A buzzword describing fraudulent activities performed by corporations in order to falsify their financial statements. Typically, cooking the books involves augmenting financial data to yield previously non existent earnings. Examples of… … Investment dictionary
cook the books (to) — Falsify records. ► “In the same way a company can use ‘CREATIVE ACCOUNTING’ to make its financials look the way it wants them to, the federal government can cook its books, too.” (Secured Lender, May/June 1995, p. 44) … American business jargon
cook the books — A person who cooks the books is one who changes the facts or figures in the financial accounts, often in order to steal money. The actor discovered after a while that his agent was cooking the books … English Idioms & idiomatic expressions
cook the books — verb a) To manipulate accounting information, especially illegally. Corp., once a major U.S. corporation, is now famous for cooking the books. b) To falsify an account of an event … Wiktionary
cook the books — The practice of falsifying financial records and statements with the intention of misleading others on the financial performance or financial position of an accounting entity … Accounting dictionary
cook the books — falsely alter account books … English contemporary dictionary
