Bookkeeping is the job or the daily work of writing down every time money comes in or goes out of a company, and keeping those records neat and true. It is the quiet, careful work behind “the accounts”: dates, amounts, who paid, who was paid.

Bookkeeping is the job or the daily workbookkeeping是一種工作，或者說是每天要做的事 of writing down every time money comes in or goes out of a company把公司每一筆錢的進出都記下來 and keeping those records neat and true而且要把這些紀錄記得整整齊齊、真真確確。It is the quiet, careful work behind "the accounts"它是『帳目』背後那種安靜、細心的工作: dates, amounts, who paid, who was paid日期、金額、誰付了錢、誰收了錢。

Though actually, bookkeeping and accounting are not the same thing, even if people mix them up. Bookkeeping is the recording. Accounting is looking at those numbers, making sense of them, and deciding what they mean for tax or for the bosses.

Though actually, bookkeeping and accounting are not the same thing不過其實bookkeeping和accounting不是同一件事 even if people mix them up就算大家常常搞混。Bookkeeping is the recordingbookkeeping是在做記錄。Accounting is looking at those numbersaccounting是在看這些數字 making sense of them弄懂它們的意義 and deciding what they mean for tax or for the bosses然後判斷這些數字對報稅或對老闆代表什麼。

The word looks like books because it comes from keeping the books — the old account books, not storybooks on a shelf. It is ordinary workplace English, used in a tiny shop as much as in a big firm; not slang, not academic.

The word looks like books because it comes from keeping the books這個字看起來跟books（書）有關，是因為它源自keeping the books（記帳簿） — the old account books, not storybooks on a shelf——指的是舊時代的帳簿，不是架上的故事書。It is ordinary workplace English這是很普通的職場英文 used in a tiny shop as much as in a big firm小店會用，大公司也一樣會用 not slang, not academic不是俚語，也不是學術用語。