account for (someone or something)

phrasal verb

accounted for (someone or something); accounting for (someone or something); accounts for (someone or something)

1

: to show what happened to (someone or something) : know where (something or someone) is

We have to account for the time we spend on each activity.

The government couldn't account for millions of dollars of the taxpayers' money.

Is everyone accounted for?

2

: to destroy or kill (someone or something)

Enemy fighters have accounted for most of our bombers, Sir.

3

chiefly British : to defeat or beat (someone or something)

We accounted for the challengers 3–2.

Examples of account for (someone or something) in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Consider how people move through the space, and always account for chairs being pulled out. 7. —Sophie Flaxman, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 July 2024

The new rules will instead enable suppliers to weigh local factors such as climate, population and lot size, and to account for previous investments in conservation. —Hayley Smith, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2024

Under the new rules, the EPA expects that EVs could account for up to 56% of new passenger vehicles sold for model years 2030 through 2032. —Kevin Bessler | The Center Square, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 1 July 2024

Johsnson & Johnson said that the ovarian lawsuits that would be settled with this plan account for 99.75% of all its pending talc lawsuits. —Bruce Gil, Quartz, 1 July 2024