Bank Teller: Meaning, Duties, and Usage

Meaning 1：bank teller (bank teller)

bank teller 🔊

/bæŋk ˈtɛlər/

A person who works at a bank counter, helping customers with cash transactions like deposits and withdrawals.

bank teller 🔊

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/bæŋk ˈtɛlər/

A bank employee who handles routine transactions such as deposits, withdrawals, and cash counting at the front counter.

📁 Category：Social Roles 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

'Bank' from Italian 'banca' (bench/money exchange table); 'teller' from Old English 'tellan' (to count).

💡 Mnemonic

Picture a 'teller' at a desk 'telling' (counting) stacks of cash on a bench (banca).

📖 Example

The bank teller kindly assisted my grandmother in depositing her pension money. 🔊 The bank teller kindly assisted my grandmother in depositing her pension money.

🔗 Collocations

teller window – The counter area where a bank teller serves customers.

head teller – The senior teller who supervises other tellers and oversees cash operations.

teller transaction – A financial transaction processed by a bank teller, such as a deposit or withdrawal.

🔄 Synonyms

bank clerk (n.) – An employee who performs clerical duties in a bank, often including teller tasks.

cashier (n.) – A person who handles payments and cash transactions, commonly at banks or retail stores.

counter clerk (n.) – A clerk who works at a service counter, especially in a bank or post office.

📖 Cultural Story

Teller originally meant 'one who counts' (tallies). Medieval Italian moneylenders worked at benches (banca). The term evolved to describe bank employees handling cash at counters.