account

[ uh-kount ]

noun

1. an oral or written description of particular events or situations; narrative:

   an account of the meetings;

   an account of the trip.

   Synonyms: chronicle, report

2. an explanatory statement of conduct, as to a superior.

   Synonyms: justification

3. a statement of reasons, causes, etc., explaining some event.
4. reason; basis:

   On this account I'm refusing your offer.

5. importance; worth; value; consequence:

   things of no account.

   Synonyms: significance, import

6. estimation; judgment:

   In his account it was an excellent piece of work.

   Synonyms: consideration

7. an amount of money deposited with a bank, as in a checking or savings account:

   My account is now with Third National.

8. Also called charge account. an accommodation or service extended by a business to a customer or client permitting the charging of goods or services, the returning for credit of unsatisfactory merchandise, etc.:

   Do you have an account at this store?

   My account with the restaurant is past due.

9. a statement of financial transactions.
10. Bookkeeping.
    1. a formal record of the debits and credits relating to the person, business, etc., named at the head of the ledger account.
    2. a balance of a specified period's receipts and expenditures.
11. Commerce.
    1. a business relation in which credit is used.
    2. any customer or client, especially one carried on a regular credit basis.
    3. Also called advertising account. the business assigned to an advertising agency by a client:

       The toothpaste account was awarded to a new agency last year.

12. Digital Technology. an electronic identity, as a username and its associated data, assigned to an individual or group for secure, personalized access to a website, network, digital service, etc.: Your email account has been hacked!

    I don’t access my work account from my home computer.

    Your email account has been hacked!

verb (used without object)

1. to give an explanation (usually followed by for ):

   to account for the accident.

2. to answer concerning one's conduct, duties, etc. (usually followed by for ):

   to account for the missing documents.

3. to provide a report on money received, kept, and spent.
4. to cause (usually followed by for ):

   The humidity accounts for our discomfort.

   His reckless driving accounted for the accident.

verb (used with object)

1. to regard; consider as:

   I account myself well paid.

2. to assign or impute (usually followed by to ):

   the many virtues accounted to him.

account

/ əˈkaʊnt /

noun

1. a verbal or written report, description, or narration of some occurrence, event, etc
2. an explanation of conduct, esp one made to someone in authority
3. ground; basis; consideration (often in the phrases on this ( that, every, no, etc) account , on account of )
4. importance, consequence, or value

   of little account

5. assessment; judgment
6. profit or advantage

   to turn an idea to account

7. part or behalf (only in the phrase on one's or someone's account )
8. finance
   1. a business relationship between a bank, department store, stockbroker, etc, and a depositor, customer, or client permitting the latter certain banking or credit services
   2. the sum of money deposited at a bank
   3. the amount of credit available to the holder of an account
   4. a record of these
9. a statement of monetary transactions with the resulting balance
10. (on the London Stock Exchange) the period, ordinarily of a fortnight's duration, in which transactions formerly took place and at the end of which settlements were made
11. accounting a chronological list of debits and credits relating to a specified asset, liability, expense, or income of a business and forming part of the ledger
12. 1. a regular client or customer, esp a firm that purchases commodities on credit
    2. an area of business assigned to another

       they transferred their publicity account to a new agent

13. call to account or bring to account
    1. to insist on explanation
    2. to rebuke; reprimand
    3. to hold responsible
14. give a bad account of oneself
    to perform badly

    he gave a bad account of himself in the examination

15. give a good account of oneself
    to perform well
16. on account
    1. on credit
    2. Alsoto account as partial payment
17. on account of
    preposition because of; by reason of
18. take account of or take into account
    to take into consideration; allow for
19. settle accounts with or square accounts with
    1. to pay or receive a balance due
    2. to get revenge on (someone)
20. See bank account credit account

verb

1. tr to consider or reckon

   he accounts himself poor

Other Words From

• pre·ac·count verb
• sub·ac·count noun
• un·ac·count·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of account¹

First recorded in 1225–75; (noun) Middle English a(c)ount(e), ac(c)ompte, from Anglo-French, Old French aco(u)nte, acompte; (verb) Middle English ac(co)unten, from Old French acunter, acompter. See ac-, count ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of account¹

C13: from Old French acont, from conter, compter to count ¹

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. call to account,
   1. to hold accountable; blame; reprimand:

      Call them to account for having endangered their lives.

   2. ask for an explanation of.
2. give a good / bad account of, to do something or conduct oneself in a good (bad, etc.) manner:

   She gave a good account of herself in the tennis tournament.

3. hold to account, to hold responsible; hold accountable or culpable:

   If any of the silver is missing, I'm going to hold you to account.

4. on account of,
   1. by reason of; because of.
   2. for the sake of:

      She saw it through on account of me.

5. on account, as an installment or a partial payment:

   I can't pay the balance, but here's $10 on account.

6. on all accounts, in any case; under any circumstances. Also at all accounts.
7. on no account, under no circumstances; absolutely not:

   On no account should you buy that painting without having it appraised.

8. take account of, Also take into account.
   1. to make allowance for; consider:

      One must take account of the difficult circumstances. Taking account of the high overhead, the price is not excessive.

   2. to notice or observe.
9. turn to account, to derive profit or use from; turn to advantage:

   She has turned her misfortunes to account.

More idioms and phrases containing account

In addition to the idiom beginning with account , also see all present and accounted for ; by all accounts ; call to account ; give a good account ; no accounting for tastes ; on account of ; on no account ; on one's own account ; take account of ; take into account ; turn to good account .

Synonym Study

See narrative.

Example Sentences

The incentives would apply in single-family zones only if a property is owned by a public agency or a faith-based organization, which accounts for just a sliver of the city’s single-family lots.

From Los Angeles Times

Whilst at the same time only 0.01% of funding globally goes to climate change projects that also take account of women.

From BBC

In addition, the older generation increased by about 42,500 people, accounting for 37.1% of the total population.

From Science Daily

On 4 November, the prime minister announced plans to create a new Border Security Command, which the government say will have enhanced powers to trace suspected traffickers and shut down their bank accounts.

From BBC

West Virginia, for example, has the highest opioid death rate but its homeless population is a fraction of California’s, even when accounting for its small population.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• detail
• explanation
• history
• narrative
• report
• story
• tale
• version

More About Account

What does account mean?

An account is a description of an event, either written or spoken, as in When Josh came home late, his parents demanded an account of where he had been.

To account means to tell given an explanation of, as you might do in telling a story of events.

An account is also a file, profile, or log associated with a business, service, or bank used to keep track of personal information and transactions. To gain access to most social media sites, you have to give the site some basic information, like your name and email address. With this information, the site creates an account for you, giving you access.

To account can mean to give an explanation of one’s actions, as in Martina needed to account for her missing homework to avoid getting a zero.

Example: According to your account of the evening, you were never near the scene of the crime.

Where does account come from?

The first records of the term account come from around the 1200s. It ultimately comes from the Old French acompter. The French term comes from the root conter, meaning “to tell” or “to count.” Account is used both to give an explanation and to count transactions.

While accounts once were mostly related to money, as with a list of a business’s transactions, now there are many other types. You can have a library account, which allows you to borrow books from the library. You can also have a loyalty account for a store, which tracks your purchases and gives you rewards for spending money with the store. Computer technology and the internet have given us even more accounts. Most people have so many accounts that they can’t account for all of them or recount them in an account. If the number of accounts in this paragraph has your head spinning, imagine how accountants feel.

Did you know … ?

What are some other forms related to account?

• preaccount (verb)
• subaccount (noun)
• unaccounted (adjective)
• unaccountable (adjective)

What are some synonyms for account?

• bill
• detail
• explanation
• interest
• record

What are some words that share a root or word element with account? 

• accounting
• count
• recount
• accountant

What are some words that often get used in discussing account?

• bank
• number
• password
• sign-in

How is account used in real life?

Account is a very common word, especially when discussing a person’s access to online software or platforms.

I still use my moms Kroger card account number. 🤷🏽‍♂️

— Lecrae (@lecrae) December 18, 2017

Success isn't measured by your bank account

— Nash Grier (@Nashgrier) May 23, 2015

Alcatraz's reputation as an extremely tough prison was a bit of a Hollywood creation.

Inmates often asked that they be transferred to Alcatraz on account of its good food and one-man cells.

— UberFacts (@UberFacts) July 22, 2020

 

Try using account!

Is account used correctly in the following sentence?

If Lani can’t account for the company’s missing money, she’ll be fired from her job.