Which of the following best defines a debit as it's used in double-entry accounting?

Which of the following best defines a debit as it's used in double-entry accounting?

• A. A decrease in assets/expenses and a decrease in liabilities/owner's equity and revenue.
• B. An increase in assets/expenses and a decrease in liabilities/owner's equity and revenue.
• C. An increase in assets/owner's equity and income and a decrease in liabilities/expenses.
• D. An increase in liabilities/expenses and a decrease in assets/owner's equity and revenue.

Answer: (D)

In double-entry accounting, a debit’s effect depends on the type of account. Debits increase asset and expense accounts, and they decrease liability, owner’s equity, and revenue accounts. So a debit entry raises the asset side or expense side, while reducing what the business owes (liabilities), the owners’ claims (equity), and the income recognized (revenue). That’s why the best description is a debit that increases assets and expenses and decreases liabilities, owner’s equity, and revenue. For example, buying supplies with cash debits Supplies (asset) and credits Cash (another asset), while incurring an expense like utilities would debit Utilities Expense and credit Cash or Accounts Payable. Descriptions that debit increases liabilities or revenue, or that debits decrease assets, don’t fit how debits actually work.

In double-entry accounting, a debit’s effect depends on the type of account. Debits increase asset and expense accounts, and they decrease liability, owner’s equity, and revenue accounts. So a debit entry raises the asset side or expense side, while reducing what the business owes (liabilities), the owners’ claims (equity), and the income recognized (revenue). That’s why the best description is a debit that increases assets and expenses and decreases liabilities, owner’s equity, and revenue. For example, buying supplies with cash debits Supplies (asset) and credits Cash (another asset), while incurring an expense like utilities would debit Utilities Expense and credit Cash or Accounts Payable. Descriptions that debit increases liabilities or revenue, or that debits decrease assets, don’t fit how debits actually work.