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Glite Dictionary
suspense account

suspense account

7.9
A temporary place in the books for unclear money entries until staff put them in the right place
  • noun
  • /səˈspɛns əˈkaʊnt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : cuenta de suspense
  • Why is there money in the suspense account?

Examples

  • The company maintains a suspense account for unclassified transactions.

  • An audit revealed several entries lingering in the suspense account from previous months.

  • At the end of the year, all balances in the suspense account must be investigated and resolved.

  • The company placed the ambiguous transaction into a suspense account until it could be properly classified.

  • The company placed the unexpected payment in a suspense account until they could verify its origin.

  • After receiving the disputed invoice, the accountant decided to hold the funds in a suspense account until the matter was resolved.

  • Funds that are questionable are often temporarily recorded in a suspense account until their final classification is determined.

Surface Forms

suspense account singular
suspense accounts plural

Morphology

suspense + account

The compound literally combines 'suspense' (a state of uncertainty) with 'account' (a record), so a learner can plausibly infer it refers to a record for uncertain transactions. However, the sense is technical/jargonistic (accounting-specific) and learners who only know the common emotional sense of 'suspense' may not grasp the specialised accounting function without exposure, so the transparency is partial.

Etymology

Suspense account comes from old bookkeeping. When accountants had a money entry they were not sure about, they put it into a special account called suspense, like a 'holding box', until they knew where it belonged. That's why it means a 'temporary place' for unclear entries.