account (to sb) for sth
— phrasal verb with account uk/əˈkaʊnt/us/əˈkaʊnt/verb [ T + obj + noun/adj ] formal
C2 to explain the reason for something or the cause of something:
Can you account for your absence last Friday?
She was unable to account for over $5,000 (= she could not explain where the money was).
He has to account to his manager for (= tell his manager about and explain) all his movements.
More examples
- There is £50 missing from the till - how do account for that?
- You will have to account for your absence to the head teacher in the morning.
- Sarah was bullied at school, which might account for her behaviour now.
- It's difficult to account for the recent increase in violent crime.
- The prime minister will have to account to the whole nation for his decision.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Defining & explaining
- (do you) see what I mean? idiom
- accountable
- cast
- clarify
- convey
- demystify
- descriptive
- every picture tells a story idiom
- evocative
- evoke
- explicable
- explicate
- expound
- fill
- get sth across
- justify
- mean
- scene
- schematic
- that is to say ... idiom
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