answer for

British  

verb

1. to be liable or responsible for (a person's actions, behaviour, etc)

2. to vouch for or speak on behalf of (a person)

3. to suffer or atone for (one's wrongdoing)

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answer for Idioms  

1. Take responsibility for, take charge of, as in The new alarm system has to answer for the security of the grounds . [Late 1200s]

2. Take the blame for, as in The kids who were caught shoplifting have a lot to answer for . [c. 1200]

3. To vouch for or sponsor someone, as in I'll answer for John as a reliable employee . [Early 1700s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

answer for

The conversations behind the scenes at the convention culminated in Harris’ final answer for their request: no.

From Slate ● Sep. 25, 2026

The challenge is that AI sits between these cases in an awkward way: It resembles the colleague in what it can do and the ventilator in what it can answer for.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

These sorts of questions are a lot easier to answer for a child, he says, instead of asking what they did.

From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026

I think the filmmaker has an answer for himself, but he’d rather ask how we feel about it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

“My wife and sister-in-law have heart trouble and I'll assure you had this horrifying program been fatal to either of them the Columbia Company would have had to answer for it.”

From "Spooked!" by Gail Jarrow