Or cheque in British English, a payment and credit-creating instrument that constitutes an order to pay money from a bank account. More specifically, it is a bill of exchange or draft on a bank which is drawn against deposited money, instructing a bank (drawee) to pay a stated amount of money to a designated person or firm (payee) on demand. A check is widely considered a popular substitute for cash in everyday transactions. If endorsed and not crossed (there is no drawing of two parallel lines across its face or across a corner thereof), it can be negotiable; that is it can be transferred from its original payee to any other person by endorsement. The drawer, or the person writing the check, should usually have a checking account (current account) with a bank in which money was deposited. Various details need to be shown on the face of a check, including the money amount, date of payment, payee (if not a bearer or cash check), and signature of the drawer.

Checks were introduced as a payment tool in view of the difficulties associated with carrying and storing large amounts of gold and silver. Characteristically, checks are order instruments (as opposed to bearer instruments), i.e. they are used to pay money to the order of a named person, whether natural or legal, or the payee. However, some jurisdictions permit check endorsement, allowing payees to specify another party to whom a check should be payable and ultimately paid.

The word check is linguistically derived from Arabic. The word “saq” (pl. sukuk, though sukuk imply a different meaning today; that is Islamic bonds) in Arabic was used to refer to a document or piece of paper that contains a pledge to pay a specified sum of money against purchases of goods and commodities. As such, carrying such pieces of paper, rather than gold and silver coins, was more convenient and secure, and much easier. Payees redeemed the value of saq from the persons (other merchants or institutions) on whom it was drawn.