bean counter

English

Alternative forms

• bean-counter

Noun

bean counter (plural bean counters)

1. (idiomatic, mildly derogatory) A person, such as an accountant or financial officer, who is concerned with quantification, especially to the exclusion of other matters: (Financial Times)..
   • 1985, "Editorial: Sniffing at DOC health costs," Gainsville Sun, 2 Aug., p. 14A (retrieved 13 Sep. 2009):

     "Companies tended to recognize two cultures - that of the technologist and that of the bean counter"

   • 2008, Robert Chew, "Who Is Bernie Madoff? Many Investors Didn't Ask," Time, 23 Dec:

     And, in our case, the accounting firm of Halpern & Mantovani, CPA, in Encino, Calif., Chais' chief bean counter, pumped out the quarterly statements as if it were all rock solid.

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