Generally accepted accounting practice financial definition of Generally accepted accounting practice. Generally accepted accounting practice finance term by the Free Online Dictionary.

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)

The overall conventions, rules, and procedures that define accepted accounting practice at a particular time in the U.S.

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles

Rules to which accountants adhere when preparing financial statements. The Generally Accepted Accounting Principles exist to ensure that American accountants are using the same or almost the same standards so that comparison of financial statements between or within a company is easy and accurate. They also promote transparency in accounting. The GAAP are set by the FASB. See also: International Financial Reporting Standards.

generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)

Guidelines and rules for use by accountants in preparing financial statements. These principles, which evolved over a period of years, are designed to help ensure that financial data are presented fairly and are comparable from firm to firm and from industry to industry. In expressing an opinion on financial statements, certified public accountants are required to stipulate whether their statements have been prepared according to generally accepted accounting principles.

Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), which are the basis for financial reporting by the private sector in the United States, have been codified by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) into a single authoritative source.

The codification is designed to strengthen the economic system by organizing standards from various sources into approximately 90 accounting topics and providing uniform criteria for communicating data. The code is scheduled for final adoption at the end of 2008 following a one-year verification period.

generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)

(pronounced “gap”) Established by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), these are the guidelines for proper accounting practices.

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)

What Does Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) Mean?

The overriding accounting principles, standards, and procedures that companies follow when compiling their financial statements. GAAP is a combination of authoritative standards (set by policy boards) and the commonly accepted ways of recording and reporting accounting information.

Investopedia explains Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)

Companies use GAAP to standardize their financial statements so that investors can better use those statements to analyze a company for investment purposes. GAAP covers things such as revenue recognition, balance sheet item classification, and outstanding share measurements. Companies are expected to follow GAAP rules when reporting their financial data in their financial statements. If a financial statement is not prepared using GAAP principles, investors should be very wary! That said, GAAP is only a set of guidelines, and that leaves plenty of room for interpretation by unscrupulous accountants to distort figures. Thus, even with GAAP, one should not put complete faith in the numbers companies report.

Related Terms:
• Accrual Accounting
• Balance Sheet
• Cash Flow Statement
• Income Statement
• First In, First Out—FIFO

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Accounting Earnings Auditor's Certificate Auditor's Report Base Stock Method Clean Opinion Detailed Audit Enterprise Fund GAAP Historical Cost Lower of Cost and Market Method Managerial Accounting Non-GAAP Opinion Principes comptables generalement reconnus Principios de contabilidad generalmente aceptados Principios de contabilidade geralmente aceitos Pro Forma Earnings Qualified Opinion Standard Opinion	2, Symantec expects revenue based on generally accepted accounting practices to reach between US$1. Symantec blames enterprise sales for earnings drop by Computer News Middle East s report lets the reader know that the financial statements adhere to the Generally Accepted Accounting Practices (GAAP) that are followed in the United States. Investment Success - It?s All in the Statements Baby! by Joshua Niemeyer / Finance and Investment community It contains frequent reference to the legal and accounting requirements in the UK, both as regards to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (UK GAAP). Interpreting company reports and accounts, 10th ed by Reference & Research Book News	General Collateral Financing Trades general contractor General Creditor General Depreciation System General Ledger general lien General Loan and Collateral Agreement General Mortgage General Obligation General Obligation Bond General Obligation Bonds General Order general partner general partnership General price level General Price Level Accounting General Revenue General Rule General Securities Registered Representative Examination General Services Administration General Straight-Line Depreciation System General Strike General Tariff General Utilities Doctrine general warranty deed Generally accepted accounting practice generally accepted accounting principles Generally Accepted Auditing Standards Generation-Skipping Transfer or Trust Generic Generic Bond Generic Credit Spread Generic Market Generic Prices Generic Security Genetic Algorithms Gengetsu Gengetsukan Genka Hou Genka Shoukyaku Genkin Kessai Genkin Shugi Gensaki Gensaki Baibai Genson Gentlemen Prefer Bonds gentrification geodetic survey system geographic information system Geographic Risk Geometric mean return	generalized xanthelasma Generalized-Regression Genetic-Neural Network generalizer generalizer generalizer generalizer generalizers generalizers generalizers generalizes generalizes generalizes generalizes generalizing generalizing generalizing generalizing generalizing Generalledger Generalledger Generalleutnant generally generally generally accepted Generally Accepted Account Principles Generally Accepted Account Principles Generally Accepted Account Principles Generally Accepted Account Standards Generally Accepted Account Standards Generally Accepted Account Standards Generally accepted accounting practice Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Generally Accepted Accounting Procedures Generally Accepted Agricultural and Management Practices Generally Accepted Appraisal Rules Generally Accepted Auditing Standard Generally Accepted Auditing Standards Generally Accepted Database Design Practice Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards Generally Accepted Information Security Principles Generally Accepted IT Principles Generally Accepted Municipal Accounting Principles Generally Accepted Practices Generally Accepted Privacy Principles Generally Accepted Project Management Practice Generally Accepted Recordkeeping Principles Generally Accepted Security Principles generally accepted standard Generally Accepted Standards Generally Accepted Standards Generally Accepted Standards Generally Accepted Standards for Attestation Engagements Generally Accepted System Security Principles Generally Achievable Control Technology Generally Available Generally Available Control Technology generally known

Mentioned in

References in periodicals archive

Financial browser

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Accounting Earnings
Auditor's Certificate
Auditor's Report
Base Stock Method
Clean Opinion
Detailed Audit
Enterprise Fund
GAAP
Historical Cost
Lower of Cost and Market Method
Managerial Accounting
Non-GAAP
Opinion
Principes comptables generalement reconnus
Principios de contabilidad generalmente aceptados
Principios de contabilidade geralmente aceitos
Pro Forma Earnings
Qualified Opinion
Standard Opinion

2, Symantec expects revenue based on generally accepted accounting practices to reach between US$1.

Symantec blames enterprise sales for earnings drop by Computer News Middle East

s report lets the reader know that the financial statements adhere to the Generally Accepted Accounting Practices (GAAP) that are followed in the United States.

Investment Success - It?s All in the Statements Baby! by Joshua Niemeyer / Finance and Investment community

It contains frequent reference to the legal and accounting requirements in the UK, both as regards to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (UK GAAP).

Interpreting company reports and accounts, 10th ed by Reference & Research Book News

General Collateral Financing Trades

general contractor

General Creditor

General Depreciation System

General Ledger

general lien

General Loan and Collateral Agreement

General Mortgage

General Obligation

General Obligation Bond

General Obligation Bonds