"An audit is the independent examination of financial information of an entity, whether profit oriented or not, and irrespective of its size or legal form, when such an examination is conducted with a view to expressing an opinion thereon."
This definition of audit is given by
1
International Auditing and Assurance Standard Board (IAASB)
2
Spicer and Pegler
3
Lawrence Dicksee
4
J.R. Batliboi