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

See Examples For:

account for

U.S. operations are critical not just to avoid Trump administration tariffs but also to get closer to its U.S. clients, who account for three-quarters of its revenue.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

But successive governments have struggled to regulate the country's extensive artisanal and small-scale mining industry, where smuggling and informal trading have made it difficult for the authorities to account for all the gold produced.

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

An X account for the AP Stylebook posted last week:

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026

The reports, filed Thursday, account for donations through Sept. 19 and do not include several million dollars that have poured into campaign coffers in recent days.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

We know that the surface is dominated by silicates, which are relatively light and not heavy enough to account for the planet’s overall density.

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