The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse how the concept of management control has been defined by researchers publishing in Accounting, Organizations and Society, from 1976 to 2003. A word may develop and change over time, mainly depending on the context in which it is being used. The social and cultural context affects the meaning and content of the word. Building on etymological theory, the original meaning and use of management control as a concept among researchers published in AOS, have been traced.  The findings show that though the concept has held different emphasis during the years, a common core may be distinguished, where the concept is used as a way to describe how managers and employees work with a system, i.e. goals, planning and control, which handles resources.