An adjunct account increases the valuation of a liability account. An adjunct account is commonly used when accounting for a bond issue sold at a premium.

The par value of the bonds sold is included in one line as a credit to Bonds Payable, and the increased premium in placed in another line as a credit to Premium on Bonds payable. The technical term for the account into which a discounted bond’s discount is placed is a Contra Account.

Contra Accounts lower rather than raise the value of the assets they are associated with. Some people group these together as adjunct accounts, or more suitably as valuation accounts. The word “adjunct” means to add to something else as a supplement.

It essentially is there to bring the books into order if the value of something changes from its carrying amount, which is the amount of worth already assigned to something on the books. Accrued depreciation is another example of a valuation account.