Okuzeka
Accounting & Tax vocabulary · Bookkeeping & Ledgers

General ledger

Meaning in accounting & tax, with examples

nounCore term

In accounting & tax, general ledger means: The main set of accounts of a business, where all transactions are collected account by account to show the balance of each one.

In Turkish: büyük defter, defter-i kebir, genel muhasebe defteri

How it is used

Usually called the GL. Journal entries are posted to the general ledger, and the trial balance and financial statements are produced from it. In ERP systems the GL module sits at the centre of finance.

Example sentences

  1. All bank charges should go to a separate account in the general ledger.

  2. The general ledger is closed for March, so any new entries will go into April.

Common collocations

  • post to the general ledger
  • general ledger account
  • GL code
  • general ledger balance
  • 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.
  • chart of accountsThe organised list of every account a company uses in its ledger, each with a number and a name, grouped into assets, liabilities, equity, revenue and expenses.
  • 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.
  • postTo enter a transaction or journal into the accounting system or ledger so that it updates the account balances.

More terms: Bookkeeping & Ledgers

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