AUD CPA Glossary
Account Balances ✔✔One of three categories of financial statement assertions, relating
primarily to assets, liabilities, and equity interests.
Accounting Estimate ✔✔An approximation of a financial statement element, item, or account
used because data either is not readily available or is dependent upon the outcome of future
events.
Accounts Payable Confirmation ✔✔A request for independent verification of payables.
Accounts Receivable Confirmation ✔✔A request for independent verification of receivables.
Note that confirming accounts receivable is a required, generally accepted auditing producre.
Accuracy ✔✔A financial statement assertion in the "transactions and events" category
indicating that amounts and other data relating to recorded transactions and events have been
recorded properly.
Accuracy and Valuation ✔✔A financial statement assertion in the "presentation and
disclosure" category indicating that financial and other information are disclosed fairly and at
appropriate amounts.
Activity Ratio ✔✔A ratio that measures how effectively an enterprise is using its assets.
Adverse Opinion ✔✔An auditor's report stating that the financial statements "do not present
fairly..."
Aging Schedule ✔✔A listing of accounts receivable categorized by age (i.e., current, 30 to 60
days, 60 to 90 days, etc.).
Agreed-upon Procedures ✔✔An engagement in which a practitioner is engaged to issue a
report of findings based on specific agreed-upon procedures.
AICPA Code of Professional Conduct ✔✔Guidelines for the behavior of members of the
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in the conduct of their professional
affairs.
, Allowance for Sampling Risk ✔✔In sampling, a "cushion" for protection against undetected
deviations that is added to the sample deviation rate to arrive at the upper deviation rate.
Analyst ✔✔An IT (Information Technology) department employee who determines system
requirements and designs a processing system to meet those requirements.
Analytical Procedures ✔✔Evaluations of financial information made by a study of plausible
relationships among both financial and nonfinancial data.
Applicable Financial Reporting Framework ✔✔The financial reporting framework that is
acceptable in view of the nature of the entity and the objective of the financial statements, or
that is required by law or regulation.
Application Controls ✔✔Information processing controls that apply to the processing of
individual "applications" (e.g., controls surrounding receivables, controls surrounding payroll,
etc.).
Appropriate (Appropriateness of Audit Evidence) ✔✔The quality of being both reliable (valid,
factual, objective, and supportable) and relevant (related to the financial statement assertion
under consideration).
Articles of Incorporation ✔✔A document filed with the state to create a corporation.
Assertion ✔✔A declaration about whether a subject matter is based on or in conformity with
selected criteria.
Association with Financial Statements ✔✔A relationship that arises when an accountant
consents to the use of his or her name in connection with financial statements, or when an
accountant has prepared the financial statements.
Assumption of Responsibility ✔✔A situation in which the group engagement partner decides
to assume responsibility for the work performed by a component auditor, and therefore does
not refer to the component auditor in the auditor's report.
Attest Engagements ✔✔An engagement in which a practitioner is engaged to issue or does
issue an examination, a review, or an agreed-upon procedures report on subject matter, or on
an assertion about the subject matter, that is the responsibility of another party.
Account Balances ✔✔One of three categories of financial statement assertions, relating
primarily to assets, liabilities, and equity interests.
Accounting Estimate ✔✔An approximation of a financial statement element, item, or account
used because data either is not readily available or is dependent upon the outcome of future
events.
Accounts Payable Confirmation ✔✔A request for independent verification of payables.
Accounts Receivable Confirmation ✔✔A request for independent verification of receivables.
Note that confirming accounts receivable is a required, generally accepted auditing producre.
Accuracy ✔✔A financial statement assertion in the "transactions and events" category
indicating that amounts and other data relating to recorded transactions and events have been
recorded properly.
Accuracy and Valuation ✔✔A financial statement assertion in the "presentation and
disclosure" category indicating that financial and other information are disclosed fairly and at
appropriate amounts.
Activity Ratio ✔✔A ratio that measures how effectively an enterprise is using its assets.
Adverse Opinion ✔✔An auditor's report stating that the financial statements "do not present
fairly..."
Aging Schedule ✔✔A listing of accounts receivable categorized by age (i.e., current, 30 to 60
days, 60 to 90 days, etc.).
Agreed-upon Procedures ✔✔An engagement in which a practitioner is engaged to issue a
report of findings based on specific agreed-upon procedures.
AICPA Code of Professional Conduct ✔✔Guidelines for the behavior of members of the
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in the conduct of their professional
affairs.
, Allowance for Sampling Risk ✔✔In sampling, a "cushion" for protection against undetected
deviations that is added to the sample deviation rate to arrive at the upper deviation rate.
Analyst ✔✔An IT (Information Technology) department employee who determines system
requirements and designs a processing system to meet those requirements.
Analytical Procedures ✔✔Evaluations of financial information made by a study of plausible
relationships among both financial and nonfinancial data.
Applicable Financial Reporting Framework ✔✔The financial reporting framework that is
acceptable in view of the nature of the entity and the objective of the financial statements, or
that is required by law or regulation.
Application Controls ✔✔Information processing controls that apply to the processing of
individual "applications" (e.g., controls surrounding receivables, controls surrounding payroll,
etc.).
Appropriate (Appropriateness of Audit Evidence) ✔✔The quality of being both reliable (valid,
factual, objective, and supportable) and relevant (related to the financial statement assertion
under consideration).
Articles of Incorporation ✔✔A document filed with the state to create a corporation.
Assertion ✔✔A declaration about whether a subject matter is based on or in conformity with
selected criteria.
Association with Financial Statements ✔✔A relationship that arises when an accountant
consents to the use of his or her name in connection with financial statements, or when an
accountant has prepared the financial statements.
Assumption of Responsibility ✔✔A situation in which the group engagement partner decides
to assume responsibility for the work performed by a component auditor, and therefore does
not refer to the component auditor in the auditor's report.
Attest Engagements ✔✔An engagement in which a practitioner is engaged to issue or does
issue an examination, a review, or an agreed-upon procedures report on subject matter, or on
an assertion about the subject matter, that is the responsibility of another party.
