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Accounting & Tax vocabulary · Bookkeeping & Ledgers

Debit

Meaning in accounting & tax, with examples

/ˈdebɪt/nounCore term

In accounting & tax, debit means: An entry on the left side of an account. Debits increase asset and expense accounts and decrease liability, equity and revenue accounts.

In Turkish: borç, borç kaydı

How it is used

Used constantly with credit in double-entry bookkeeping: every transaction has debits and credits with equal totals. It is also a verb: you debit an account. Ledgers often shorten it to Dr.

Example sentences

  1. To record the sale, debit accounts receivable and credit revenue.

  2. The total debits don't match the total credits, so there must be an error in one of the entries.

Common collocations

  • debit an account
  • debit side
  • debit balance
  • debits and credits
  • creditAn entry on the right side of an account. Credits increase liability, equity and revenue accounts and decrease asset and expense accounts.
  • journal entryA record of one business transaction in the accounting system, showing the date, the accounts affected, the debit and credit amounts and a short description.
  • trial balanceA list of all ledger accounts with their debit or credit balances at a certain date, used to check that total debits equal total credits before preparing statements.
  • general ledgerThe main set of accounts of a business, where all transactions are collected account by account to show the balance of each one.

More terms: Bookkeeping & Ledgers

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not financial advice.