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

China’s elderly now account for more than 20% of the population, according to a report earlier this month from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, which said about 297 million were aged 60 and above by the end of last year. —Simone McCarthy, CNN, 13 Sep. 2024

The president's jurisdiction over banning fracking would only account for federal land, according to Tarpley and the American Petroleum Institute. —Leah Sarnoff, ABC News, 13 Sep. 2024

At the high end of their range, this would account for 17% of U.S. electricity demand in 2030. —Ben Geman, Axios, 13 Sep. 2024

Holding commanders to account for alleged misconduct of Australian special forces between 2005 and 2016 was recommended by Maj. Gen. Paul Brereton in his war crime investigation. —Rod McGuirk, Los Angeles Times, 12 Sep. 2024