A friend of mine just asked if I had paid him back for some money he lent me. I told him the check was cancelled on the 9th. Concerned, he asked, "why'd you cancel the check?"

I replied, "I didn't stop payment on it. It was deposited and so the bank cancelled it."

This is obviously a source of confusion so I looked around online but didn't find anything satisfactory. What is the etymology of "cancelled check?"