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

Food costs account for around 38% of Golden Corral’s sales, higher than the average restaurant.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026

As a result, they account for only a small proportion of autism and intellectual disability cases across the population.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026

This included £7,500, requested three days after setting up a bank account for the society, which Zadrozny - who was a county councillor at the time - claimed was "to support heritage projects in Ashfield".

From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026

The cuts account for about 30% of the company’s workers unionized with The NewsGuild-CWA, a North American labor union of journalists and communications workers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

It was possible for hackers to use modded visors to spoof their retinal patterns and thus create a second account for themselves.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline