creative accounting
2
6.7
- noun
- /kriˈeɪtɪv əˈkaʊntɪŋ/
- Literature
:
contabilidad creativa
- creative accounting methods
- a bit of creative accounting
- a little creative accounting
Examples
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Well, it's simply a matter of creative accounting.
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Because these two, they came to my dad and they told him to do some creative accounting.
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Do creative accounting methods and procedures affect the reliability of financial statements issued by these companies?
Academic text (2018) -
Creative accounting methods should be used when preparing their financial statements.
Academic text (2018) -
Let's do a detailed audit and investigate Holmes's foray into creative accounting.
Academic text (2010) -
Due to some creative accounting, a scant four million has been saved from Lady Liberty's gaping maw.
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Many companies resort to creative accounting to make their financial health look stronger than it really is.
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The investigation revealed that the firm's use of creative accounting misled investors about its true profitability.
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After the scandal, the CEO was criticized for promoting creative accounting practices that disguised losses.
Synonyms
27
4.9
To use dishonest ways to cheat people
8
9.3
Tricks people use to deceive others to get money or advantage
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound is compositionally understandable — a learner who knows 'creative' (inventive) and 'accounting' (financial record‑keeping) can infer 'inventive or unusual accounting methods'. However, the idiomatic pragmatic nuance that these methods are typically manipulative, borderline legal, and intended to present a falsely favorable view is specialized and not fully predictable from the parts, so full meaning requires domain exposure.
Etymology
Creative accounting comes from the image of an accountant using creative tricks to change the accounting numbers, like an artist altering a picture so it looks better. So, it means using methods that are often 'legal but misleading' to make a company look healthier.