chit

Chit is a small slip of paper or card used to record information, authorize actions, or evidence a small debt. In everyday usage, a chit functions as a voucher, IOU, or accounting entry that can be redeemed for goods or services at a later time.

In hospitality and service contexts, chits commonly serve as charge records. A food chit or meal chit records meals consumed on credit in a hotel, club, canteen, or similar setting; a ration chit records approved allowances in institutional environments. In business and administration, an internal chit may authorize a task, document an expense, or function as a receipt for small purchases, sometimes tracked against payroll or petty cash.

The term also appears in historical and military usage. In barracks and colonial administration, workers or soldiers might receive chits for meals, supplies, or services, to be settled later. In accounting language, chits have long been used as short, informal records that facilitate day-to-day transactions without formal invoicing.

Etymology and related terms. The word chit derives from the Hindi and Urdu word chitthi, meaning a letter or note, and entered English through colonial-era usage. A related term, chit fund, refers to a rotating savings and credit scheme popular in parts of South Asia, where participants contribute to a pool and bids determine monthly withdrawals.

In contemporary usage, the sense of chit as a small notes-based record persists in many institutions, while fancier or electronic systems have largely supplanted paper chits in formal settings. The term remains common in casual speech and in older administrative contexts.