billing

billing — noun

1. the work of preparing invoices and sending them to customers so the customers kn

1.nounB2
Definition

the work of preparing invoices and sending them to customers so the customers know how much they must pay for goods or services they have used.

Example

Bram works in the hospital's billing department and answers patient questions about insurance.

noun modifier: billing department

Our gym switched to monthly billing, so members pay on the first day of each month.

collocation: monthly billing / billing cycle

Common collocations
  • billing department
  • billing cycle
  • billing address
  • billing error
  • monthly billing
  • online billing
Synonyms
  • invoicing

    very close in meaning; common in business-to-business contexts

  • charging

    broader; can mean asking for money in any way, not only by formal bill

Grammar Patterns

billing for [service]

billing cycle

Usage Note

Almost always uncountable. Frequently used as a noun modifier in fixed phrases like 'billing department', 'billing cycle', 'billing address', and 'billing error'.

Common Mistakes

I received my billings yesterday.
I received my bill yesterday.
a single piece of paper asking for money is a 'bill'; 'billing' is the whole process.
The shop did a billing of $200.
The shop sent me a bill for $200.
'billing' is not used to mean a single charge or amount.

2. the way a show, concert, or film is described to the public in advertising, espe

2.nounC1
Definition

the way a show, concert, or film is described to the public in advertising, especially the praise or claims made about how good or exciting it will be.

Example

The festival's advance billing promised a magical evening of jazz under the stars.

collocation: advance billing

Critics said the new musical did not live up to its billing as the show of the year.

collocation: live up to its billing

Common collocations
  • advance billing
  • live up to its billing
  • glowing billing
Synonyms
  • promotion

    broader; covers any marketing, not just printed advertising for a show

  • publicity

    focuses on public attention generated; billing focuses on how the act is described

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1 by context: this sense always relates to performances or shows, not money. Often appears in the fixed phrase 'live up to its/the billing' meaning to be as good as the advertising said.

Common Mistakes

The poster has a nice billing for the band.
The poster gives the band nice billing.
the show or performer 'gets' or 'receives' billing; the billing is not 'on' the poster as a thing.

3. the position given to a performer's name on a poster or programme compared to th

3.nounC1
Definition

the position given to a performer's name on a poster or programme compared to the other performers, showing how important their role in the show is.

Example

Kalani was thrilled to get top billing on the new Broadway musical.

collocation: top billing

The veteran actor agreed to take second billing behind the young star.

collocation: second billing

Common collocations
  • top billing
  • star billing
  • second billing
  • equal billing
  • share billing
Synonyms
  • top spot

    informal; refers to the best position on a list, including non-show contexts

  • headline position

    phrase for the same idea; emphasises being the main attraction

Grammar Patterns

top / star / second billing

Usage Note

Subject of the verb is usually the performer, not the show. Common verbs with this sense are 'get', 'receive', 'take', 'share', and 'give'. Almost always preceded by an adjective like 'top', 'star', 'second', or 'equal'.

Common Mistakes

She had a high billing in the film.
She got top billing in the film.
the standard adjectives are 'top', 'star', 'second', or 'equal', not 'high' or 'big'.

Word family

  • bill
    nounA2
  • bill
    verbB2
  • biller
    nounC1
  • billable
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All three words describe asking customers for money, but the focus differs. 'Billing' is the broadest term for the whole routine of preparing and sending requests for payment, and it appears most often in fixed compounds like 'billing cycle' or 'billing department'. 'Invoicing' is almost a synonym but feels more formal and business-to-business; an invoice is a specific document with line items, so 'invoicing' implies that paperwork. 'Charging' is the most general — it simply means asking someone to pay, with no requirement that a written bill is produced. A market stall charges five dollars for a melon, but it does not 'bill' or 'invoice' the buyer. In practice: software companies talk about 'billing systems', accountants talk about 'invoicing clients', and shops simply 'charge' customers at the counter.

billing ↗invoicingcharging

Common collocations

Nouns

  • billing department
  • billing cycle
  • billing address
  • billing error
  • billing system
  • billing period

Phrases

  • top billing
  • star billing
  • live up to its billing
  • advance billing

Prepositions

  • billing for
  • billing from

Etymology

Anglo-FrenchMiddle EnglishModern English

From the noun 'bill' (a written statement of money owed) plus the suffix '-ing', which turns a verb or noun into a word meaning the action or process. The verb 'to bill' someone for goods has been used in English since the 1860s, and 'billing' as the activity of sending out bills followed soon after. The theatrical senses, meaning the way a show is advertised or how performers' names are listed, came from a separate but related use of 'bill' to mean a printed poster or playbill, common from the early 1800s.