account for

British  

verb

1. to give reasons for (an event, act, etc)

2. to make or provide a reckoning of (expenditure, payments, etc)

3. to be responsible for destroying, killing, or putting (people, aircraft, etc) out of action

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account for Idioms  

1. Be the determining factor in; cause. For example, The heat wave accounts for all this food spoilage , or Icy roads account for the increase in accidents .

2. Explain or justify, as in Jane was upset because her son couldn't account for the three hours between his last class and his arrival at home . Both of these related usages are derived from the literal meaning of the phrase, that is, “make a reckoning of an account.” [Second half of 1700s]

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Example Sentences

This exemplary service failed to account for her disturbingly poor judgment, risking blackmail and conflict-of-interest allegations, since the Atlanta Police Department appears before her court; nor her lack of candor to the court.

From Slate • Jun. 8, 2026

Latinos account for more than 60% of the shoppers, according to the L.A.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 7, 2026

They also used the shortest path in a non-Riemannian space to account for diminishing returns in color perception, another effect that had not been fully captured by the older approach.

From Science Daily • Jun. 7, 2026

That’s because the top 20% of earners account for roughly 60% of consumer spending.

From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026

Alvarez wondered what it was about a thin lamina of clay, barely a quarter of an inch thick, that could account for such a dramatic moment in Earth’s history.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson