Q.State, without preparing the full ledger, whether each of the following accounts would normally show a debit balance or a credit balance, and why:

Recognising the NORMAL balance of an account type, without working through a full ledger, is a quick but important check on whether an account's figure looks reasonable. …

1. Machinery A/c — an asset (Real Account) → normally a debit balance (assets are what the business owns, recorded on the debit side when acquired).
2. Creditors A/c — a liability (Personal Account, representing what the business owes suppliers) → normally a credit balance.
3. Capital A/c — represents what the business owes the owner → normally a credit balance.
4. Salary A/c — an expense (Nominal Account) → normally a debit balance, since all expenses are debited.
5. Commission Received A/c — an income (Nominal Account) → normally a credit balance, since all incomes/gains are credited. …

Assuming every account can show either kind of balance with equal likelihood — while unusual balances can genuinely occur (e.g. a bank overdraft turns the Bank A/c into a credit balance), the NORMAL expected balance for each standard account type follows the Asset/E …