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单词 account
释义

Definition of account in English:

account

noun əˈkaʊntəˈkaʊnt

  • 1A report or description of an event or experience.

    a detailed account of what has been achieved
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Based on eyewitness accounts, the report described how Pashtun villages were attacked after being disarmed by local militia commanders.
    • Most of the accounts describe surrealistic events that usually involve cheating death - but not always.
    • Colin gives his girlfriend and neighbours a detailed account of the court proceedings and events leading up to a murder.
    • What follows is a brief account of my experiences and a reconstruction of some events from discussions with the victims.
    • This is a fascinating collection of poems, essays, reports and accounts based on the experience of work and working.
    • As you rightly stated, the story reported was an accurate account of the events in the Council Chamber that evening.
    • His book, Pity the Nation, is an account of the events of those years and his own experiences reporting them.
    • Historical accounts describe the young princess as exceedingly tall, thin, pock-marked, and plain, but with a generous nature.
    • A reader of this blog sent me an account of his experience of the campaign, and of its effect on voters.
    • Dr Friedman's report then gives an account of D.'s further experiences while he was in care.
    • Lots of first person accounts of historical events.
    • There have been several remarkably detailed newspaper accounts of an event that could only have been witnessed by those directly involved - and none of these has yet spoken publicly.
    • A world away from dry accounts of historical events, it succeeds in shedding much new light on the 1905 Russian Revolution in an accessible and exciting way.
    • Although this is a historical event, the accounts include variations as far as details are concerned.
    • Not only was I reading about the lives of my ancestors, but about their friends and acquaintances too - and accounts of historical events which my uncle recorded in his diary on the day they happened.
    • Morality and ethics consist of prescriptive statements about how one ought to behave; they do not purport to be descriptive accounts of actual historical behaviour.
    • Even if they are somewhat distorted or adapted, they remain accounts of experienced events, and as such they are valuable sources for the historian.
    • Thus she began her account with a detailed description of the appropriate behaviour of a collector engaging at first hand with the people.
    • There, anyone with online access can post and read news stories and personal accounts of events, such as demonstrations, thus opening up media in new ways.
    • Users can post and read first - hand accounts of fellow travellers experiences.
    Synonyms
    description, report, version, story, narration, narrative, statement, news, explanation, exposition, interpretation, communiqué, recital, rendition, sketch, delineation, portrayal, tale
    chronicle, history, record, archive, annal, minute, transaction, proceeding, transcript, diary, journal, weblog, blog, vlog, moblog, memoir, review, register, log, relation, rehearsal, side, view, impression
    Military, informal sitrep
    1. 1.1 An interpretation or rendering of a piece of music.
      a lively account of Offenbach's score
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Schleiermacher is already famous for his Satie interpretations and he gives well nigh definitive accounts of the music on disc.
      • The Concertos are also impressive accounts, featuring decent accompaniment by Robert Stankovsky and this Kosice-based ensemble.
      • It is a great pity that Maag did not find time to explore the wide oeuvre of Liszt's symphonic poems as on these two accounts, he was a born interpreter in this field.
      • For modern instrument accounts of Mozart's Sonatas for Violin and Piano, Steinberg and Uchida go to the head of the class.
      • Jennie Tourel, one of the smartest, most musicianly singers of our time, delivers a passionate account.
      • Off the top of my head, I can think of several wonderful accounts of the Tchaikovsky, but when I get to Beethoven, I become rather picky.
      • Let me say, however, that I have never heard an account of the Ninth that was better played or sung.
      • Elder certainly gave a brilliant account of the piece.
      • For a conductor not known for his accounts of modern music, Szell did a great deal of it and almost always superbly.
      • I think both Bernstein's accounts (on Sony and Deutsche Grammophon) authoritative.
      • We have already had excellent accounts of Beethoven and Mozart symphonies and serenades and now it is the turn of some exquisite Haydn and Schubert symphonies.
      • This is surely one of the best accounts of the concerto to be released lately.
      • Oleg Marshev is a fine interpreter of the Piano Concerto having already recorded excellent accounts of the Shostakovich and Prokofiev concertos.
      • His Mahler Tenth is still viable as a recommendable choice, as are his accounts of Shostakovich symphonies.
      • All round, a flawless account, celebrating a Schubert who is as much the son of Haydn and Mozart as the father of Schumann and Brahms.
      • They give a fine account of the Overture in C minor which has some delightful work for bassoon.
      • The recording is quite superb however and is definitely preferable to Bakels on Naxos or the ageing Boult and Previn who remain however, very valid accounts on all planes.
      • Silverthorne and his accompanist, Jacobson, give dark, richly passionate accounts.
      • I haven't heard better accounts of the Holst and Vaughan Williams works.
      • Even so, Harnoncourt delivers one of the most rhythmically incisive accounts of the scherzo, sharper even than Szell's.
      Synonyms
      performance, interpretation, rendering, rendition, reading, recital, playing, singing, execution

  • 2A record or statement of financial expenditure and receipts relating to a particular period or purpose.

    the barman was doing his accounts
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Today's businesses are managed by individuals who are obsessed with the minutiae of manipulating financial accounts.
    • Mr Hardy added that all businesses should also ensure the date of each purchase is clearly recorded in their accounts because the time periods for capital allowance schemes are often time-sensitive.
    • It alleged that ERF's accounts and financial statements were misstated.
    • This is to facilitate companies who are working to tight deadlines with their end of year financial accounts.
    • Profits at the Port of Cork Company more than halved last year, according to its latest financial accounts.
    • I have among my financial memorabilia its 1968 accounts, when it was still known as Wiles Group.
    • The second is that firms do not have adequate systems and controls in place to deal with a potentially high volume of accounts or adequate financial resources to support CTF business.
    • Details of the transfer are included in the notes to the 2004 financial accounts.
    • Groups operating within The Priestley will now run as individual business organisations, with their own financial accounts.
    • Any expenditure included in the accounts where receipts or vouchers were not available was properly made in connection with the carrying on of the company's business.
    • Compliance involves examining a set of key accounts including payroll, financial reporting, purchasing, payables and billing.
    • While the insolvency practitioners continue to cast their eye over City's financial accounts, the Trust are now putting fundraising plans in place.
    • Another example, in order to have good financial practice, all local governments have to have financial accounts in the same format.
    • The advanced course is aimed at providing farmers with the expertise in using packages such as breeding charts, farm accounts and VAT recording and returns.
    • They also suggested he could call an extraordinary general meeting to get a look at Manchester United's financial accounts.
    • Tenth, engage the services of a reputed auditing/accountancy firm to review and report on the financial statements and audited accounts of the NSAs.
    • Franchisers' financial statements and profit-and-loss accounts, at least in the last two years, should be examined.
    • Because it applies across most naturally occurring number distributions, it can also be used to detect fraud in financial accounts, and to spot faked results in clinical trials.
    • In theory, there are regulators to keep an eye on corporate mischief - in practice, no regulator or guardian can hope to penetrate the complexity of modern financial accounts.
    • The Appeal did not produce annual income and expenditure accounts or balance sheets.
    • The Garda Commissioner will have to stand over the financial accounts of the force under new measures being introduced by the Government.
    Synonyms
    financial record, book, ledger, journal, balance sheet, financial statement, results
    1. 2.1accounts The department of a company that deals with financial accounts.
      the people from Accounts
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Two of these men work in the Department's Accounts unit.
      • By 1861 Whiffin was Chief Clerk in the Cash and Accounts Section.
      • Keith's appraisal - it's staff appraisal time and although other staff talk about their career dreams, David tries to get to know Keith from Accounts whose strengths are. er… Accounts.
      • A product of Maharaja's College, Mysore, where he did his MA in Economics, Mr. Ramaswamy joined the Indian Audit and Accounts Service in 1951.
    2. 2.2British A bill for goods or services provided over a period.
      there's no money to pay the tradesmen's accounts this month
      Example sentencesExamples
      • The programme is designed to benefit all households or residential units in Johannesburg, provided their electricity accounts are paid in full.
      • Thus, some consumers pay their electricity bills and telephone accounts in cash.
      • Once treatment has been completed the supplier will send the account directly to NHP.
      • The fact that BMI paid its share of legal accounts billed to the projects does not equate to a solicitor-client relationship with Mr. Melia.
      • All overdue accounts will incur interest of 2.5% per month.
      • Your subscription billing will end on July 16, 2003 and no accounts will be billed after that date.
      • There was loyalty to suppliers and accounts were paid promptly.
      Synonyms
      bill, invoice, statement, list of charges, reckoning, tally
      debt, amount due
      North American check
      informal tab
      archaic score

  • 3An arrangement by which a body holds funds on behalf of a client or supplies goods or services to them on credit.

    a bank account
    I began buying things on account
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Nicol is one of only 30% of parents who have redeemed their vouchers to date - paying them into child trust fund accounts at Britannia Building Society.
    • You must pay at least £1, 000 a month into the Moneyback account to qualify.
    • In all, internet fraud accounted for a quarter of the total £219.4m illegally taken from UK consumers' credit and debit card accounts in the first six months of this year.
    • The money market earns higher interest rates than their savings bank and credit union accounts.
    • Large quantities of Swiss francs credited to private accounts in various Swiss banks.
    • Stamp duty is payable on credit card accounts maintained by banks on April 1 each year.
    • By the time the error was discovered, B had withdrawn the funds credited to his account by the F Bank.
    • Child Trust Fund accounts are available from banks, building societies and other financial organisations.
    • They contribute between €1 and €5 per week and it is kept on account in the local Credit Union.
    • Furthermore, these dividend accounts are being credited with interest.
    • Funds argue that small accounts are expensive, which raises the cost of investing for all shareholders.
    • Too many suppliers have accounts more than 90 days past due.
    • They can then ‘pyramid’ this debt with a further 16 credit union accounts and borrow a further €64,000.
    • If you fail to make payments on your credit card accounts, these funds will be used to cover your obligations.
    • You can pay anything from £50 a month upwards into the account, or from £250 as a lump sum.
    • EFTPOS allows access to both credit-card accounts or own funds by means of debit cards.
    • Oh don't worry about the cost just add it to my account and bill me at the end of the month.
    • This has the effect of cutting mortgage interest when your cheque account is in credit, or increasing it when funds run short.
    • Would there be restrictions on the types of investments that could be made, say to mutual funds or IRA accounts?
    • The Treasury has promised that the first Child Trust Fund accounts will be up and running by April 2005 at the latest.
    • No transaction charges apply if your account remains in credit throughout the entire charging quarter.
    Synonyms
    bank account
    current account, deposit account, savings account
    1. 3.1 A client having an account with a supplier.
      selling bibles to established accounts in the North
      Example sentencesExamples
      • The agency will take over the account from the Helme Partnership at the end of this month.
      • It talks to the culture of differences between retail accounts and the manufacturer.
      • Also list key accounts, potential customers, market survey data, drawings, agreements, and financial projections to the plan.
      • The promo won the brand 100 new retail accounts, while awakening interest from other Hollywood studios for future tie-ins.
      • Healthy price competition between multiple vendors vying for an account benefits the customer.
      • That's especially helpful when I'm taking over an account from another sales rep.
      • Unlike other firms cited in the story, Merrill does not disclose trading volume or the number of accounts in its retail brokerage business.
      • Inspiration to pursue corporate accounts came after a customer made a request for 500 crystal bowls.
      • They also liked being able to preview jobs before printing, to establish corporate accounts, and above all, to get their orders quickly.
      • Within three years, we had 700 accounts across Europe, making us the largest suppliers of ladies' golfwear to the European market.
      • These retail accounts include leading surf retail chains as well as single store surf and extreme sports shops.
      • In Fairfield, SoBe will run local ads flagging its loyal retail accounts.
      • Brown & Sons Inc., where he handled retail and institutional accounts.
    2. 3.2 A contract to do work for a client.
      another agency was awarded the account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • In the nine months before the Unilever account, BT Global Services won £2bn of contracts.
      Synonyms
      agreement, commitment, arrangement, settlement, undertaking, understanding, compact, covenant, pact, bond
    3. 3.3British Stock Market A fixed period on a stock exchange, at the end of which payment must be made for stock that has been bought.

  • 4An arrangement by which a user is given personalized access to a computer, website, or application, typically by entering a username and password.

    we've reset your password to prevent others from accessing your account
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Please send job offers to me via my iChat account.
    • They were receiving frantic calls regarding accounts and computers crashing all weekend long, and they had no idea why.
    • This computer doesn't multitask very well, particularly if you have multiple user accounts set up via Windows XP.
    • Your account can only be used for a single internet session at any one time and for no more than 24 hours in any one day.
    • Make sure it isn't a password that you are already using for another account on your Mac.
    • Someone's been going thru my email, tweets and Facebook accounts for years.
    • The primary goal of the hackers, the company said, were the Gmail accounts of human rights activists, although none of the targeted accounts were breached.
    • Choose or create an account and click "Next."
    • Once attackers have access to an email account password, they login to the account (example: hotmail, gmail, etc), and acquire the owner's contact list of other email accounts.
    • Many of these systems have default admin accounts, non-updated software, no security patches, etc.

  • 5mass noun Importance.

    money was of no account to her
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Others are treated as if they are of little account and their views discounted.
    • It is of no account: for the royals, the crisis has passed.
    • At the time of the Reformation the body was deemed to be of little account when there was a soul to be saved.
    • The fact that a few corrupt judges disagree with this is of no account - look up the law and read it for yourself if you do not believe me.
    • Even establishment politics was of little account in the small-town press.
    • That may be of no account in the general scheme of things, but it calls into question the reasons for the Minister's office making such an obvious error.
    • The fact that in typical sized prints the difference is vanishingly small is of no account.
    • Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church.
    • The individual building blocks of words are in themselves of little account.
    • Throughout history, God has chosen those who are of no account in the world's eyes to receive and testify to the gospel.
    • You even have it if the remnant of your unfinished cup of tea has been accidentally thrown away by someone else, who's come upon it and thought it unwanted, of no account.
    • As with his son, his death was treated as a matter of no account.
    • The absence of dramatic action was of little account to audiences used to the lyrical pastoral play.
    • The clear subtext is that what goes on in the festering ghettos is of no account: just keep it away from us and our children.
    • The effect on even the far south of country will be of no account.
    • The fact that the cubs were orphans, abandoned when their mother was run over by a car, was of no account.
    • The self-evident fact that the numbers applying for asylum correlate precisely with countries where a dog's life would be a step up is of no account.
    • The fact that he has collected so many baubles in the glory years is of no account to the second row.
    • Worst of all, she treated him like he was of no account at all.
    • In most cases, that extraneous text will be of little account - but in others, it may be quite sensitive.
    Synonyms
    importance, import, significance, consequence, moment, momentousness, substance, note, mark, prominence, value, weightiness, weight, concern, interest, gravity, seriousness
verb əˈkaʊntəˈkaʊnt

  • 1with object and complement Consider or regard in a specified way.

    her visit could not be accounted a success
    he accounted himself the unluckiest man alive
    Example sentencesExamples
    • In 1862 Deck took part in the International Exhibition in London, which he accounted a great success.
    • Yet if the minister's professional reputation was salvaged, Bellievre's mission to England cannot be accounted a success.
    • This is accounted a U.N. success.
    Synonyms
    consider, regard as, reckon, hold to be, think, think of as, look on as, view as, see as, take for, judge, adjudge, count, deem, rate, gauge, interpret as

  • 2archaic no object Give or receive an account for money received.

    after 1292 he accounted to the Westminster exchequer
    Example sentencesExamples
    • In addition, they are alleged to have failed to give full details of costs and relevant information to clients at the outset of cases and not to have accounted to Customs and Excise for VAT, as well as other allegations.
    • Factory never accounted to us for all the records we'd sold, so we had no idea how much money we were losing.
    • That transaction was proceeding at just the time when the parties fell out and when the respondent was at last beginning to complain that the appellant had not properly accounted to him in respect of previous transactions.
    • The budget speech was the second within two weeks in which he accounted to the legislature on finances and services delivery.
    • The evidence is clear that the Trustees of the Trust never held meetings, operated no bank account, filed no income tax trust returns, and never accounted to the beneficiaries.

Phrases

  • by (or from) all accounts

    • According to what one has heard or read.

      by all accounts he is a pretty nice guy
      Example sentencesExamples
      • And from all accounts, many of the residents there have chosen to leave that area.
      • It won Gold at this year's award advertising ceremony and, by all accounts, is earning gold at the tills.
      • And from all accounts, there have been several such fatalities.
      • But, from all accounts, most thong wearers do claim a sense of self-assurance and freedom.
      • Jones, by all accounts, is improved this season in build and mind.
      • Yet, from all accounts, she came pretty close to erecting a large shopping complex which would have become a rather incongruous backdrop to the Taj Mahal.
      • A great business plan from all accounts but no real backing.
      • Happy to report the Hungary Festival in Japan, by all accounts, was an overwhelming success.
      • Your marriage, from all accounts, isn't a happy one.
      • However, from all accounts, our Juvenile athletes appear to be in splendid form.
      • I think it's certainly good news that the action that happened overseas has happened quickly and from all accounts there's no evidence of any athletes actually using this new substance.
      • The publisher was also, by all accounts, a damn good copy editor.
      • She went ahead with it, and from all accounts, it was an extremely emotional, moving experience.
      • This, from all accounts, may be an annual event and everyone who attended had a ball.
      • He was, by all accounts, a crude chap who, when he cursed, did so to effect.
      • Sam was, by all accounts, a practical hands-on man whose grip had the grit of hard work.
      • And by all accounts, Des is having an inspirational effect on the young members of the cast.
      • No matter that from all accounts, including this Sunday morning's, his cricketing abilities ranked somewhere near mine.
      • He was a very good musician and, from all accounts, a very kind human being, and he will be widely missed.
      • Similarly, whatever is said on radio is taken as gospel by undiscerning listeners who, from all accounts, comprise the clear majority.
      Synonyms
      reputedly, supposedly, according to popular belief, so the story goes, so i'm told, so people say, by repute, allegedly, putatively, apparently, seemingly, ostensibly

  • call (or bring) someone to account

    • Require someone to explain a mistake or poor performance.

      the government is being called to account for the economic disaster
      Example sentencesExamples
      • After that you did not even bring him to account, other than that he ‘made a mistake’, after which everything passed with no punishment.
      • So now the time has come to call them to account: Judgment Day has arrived for the judges.
      • He said the case was a clear warning to people offering alternative medicine and ‘miracle cures’ that they will be called to account.
      • She will not be buried until somebody is brought to account for what happened.
      • If any pharmacist has breached the law they will be called to account.
      • Members would work closely with other organisations and call them to account if they did not meet the needs of local people.
      • You could argue that the mechanisms have worked, they have been called to account and found lacking.
      • They could call me to account when my actions didn't match my professed beliefs.
      • Second, if you violate that trust, you will be called to account, no matter how powerful, no matter how wealthy.
      • It is interesting that they are not called to account for this startling performance.
      • His audience must decide whether these claims are credible and whether to endorse him or call him to account.
      • The journalists dared not transmit anything for which they might be called to account later.
      • Once upon a time making an oath meant that we acknowledged a higher power was witnessing our statement, and stood ready to call us to account.
      • At least with the politicians you know where they stand, you can call them to account, you can go and see them and they can't hide.
      • It was the bloggers, invoking their own standards - not a code but an evolving culture - that called them to account.
      • It's time that he was called to account for his acts of aggression.
      • The State was called to account at an international meeting, but they did not attend.
      • What is more, there is no powerful outside force that can call us to account - the change will have to come from within.
      • It is past time that the Star Tribune is called to account.
      • Much more effective, she says, is to gather intelligence about the drugs masterminds - then bring them to account before the courts themselves.
      Synonyms
      scold, chastise, upbraid, berate, castigate, lambaste, rebuke, reprimand, reproach, reprove, admonish, remonstrate with, lecture, criticize, censure

  • give a good (or bad) account of oneself

    • Make a favourable (or unfavourable) impression through one's performance.

      he gave a good account of himself in matches against Crewe and Chesterfield
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Gilmour is confident that both his fighters will give a good account of themselves on a bill which is being televised live by Sky.

  • keep an account of

    • Keep a record of.

      I kept a weekly account of my workload and activities
      Example sentencesExamples
      • They were also told that 10 percent must be saved, 10 percent given to charity, and they had to ‘keep an account of how we spent or saved the other 80 percent’.
      • Somehow he kept an account of these labyrinthine dealings, for the village court records were faultless.
      • Also keeping an account of the goings on was Paddy Maher, originally from Rathleague.
      • Chairman of the Greater Manchester Police Authority, Derek Osbaldestin, said: ‘We agreed that everyone would keep an account of the time and resources taken up dealing with the problem and how much the policing operation cost us.’
      • Normally the operator kept an account of the person's name and amount owed and expected payment every two to four weeks.
      • The locality collecting this amount should also have the right to spend and keep an account of such amounts.
      • Buy a little book ruled for the purpose for pounds, shillings and pence and keep an account of cash received and expended.

  • leave something out of account

    • Fail or decline to consider a factor.

      our obsession with growth leaves issues such as sustainability out of account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • He will be neither consoled nor assured to be told that the prejudicial information was left out of account.
      • It seems to me that it would be clearly wrong to leave those costs out of account since they must form part of the global view.
      • If I might say so, the attitude adopted by the judge was that which would perhaps appeal to most lawyers experienced in tax matters if Community law considerations could be left out of account.
      • In my opinion it would not be fair, just or reasonable, in any assessment of the loss caused by the birth of the child, to leave these benefits out of account [those are benefits from having a child as a member of one's family].
      • The Court of Appeal left this jurisprudence out of account.
      • If the motive or hope of later obtaining a tax benefit is left out of account, the purchase of shares by a dealer in shares and their later sale must unambiguously be classed as a trading transaction.
      • That conclusion, Mr Phillips says, flies in the face of the evidence recorded at paragraph 86 and shows that it was left out of account.

  • on someone's account

    • For a specified person's benefit.

      don't bother on my account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Our sincere thanks to Ray for giving up his Saturday on our account.
      • True, I was stuck, wet, worn out and thirsty, but I'd done hypothermia and dehydration before, and I didn't want anyone put out on my account.
      • In most cases I'm sure that the deceased would have preferred that the business of the Borough should not be disrupted on their account.
      • I held out my arms in response, and watched my breath steam into the morning air as I shouted, ‘Don't bother on my account.
      • Look, I'll even accept 4's, but if you plan to go lower, don't put yourself out on my account.
      • But please, don't stop name-dropping your glamorous existence in the sweaty cosmopolis on my account.
      • But if I can conclude from the evaluation that this failure is on my account then I will have to leave.
      • I'll venture down to earth as an angel and put in a good word with the Sovereign on your account, get her to mention you more often in this year's Christmas speech.
      • The closest you can get to an issue of deprivation of opportunity is through the wife's evidence and she does not ever seem to have communicated to him, on her own account or on his account.
      • I feel guilty on their account, and again, I feel it's entirely my fault.
      • We quickly intervened, but the damage had been done and we felt terrible that this had happened on our account.
      • He died in our place, on our account, that he might bring us near to God.
      • There is a Jewish prayer in which we declare to God that we forgive anyone who has harmed us in any incarnation, we ask for forgiveness in turn and pray that God will not punish anyone on our account.
      • I didn't want my boss to lose her job on my account.
      • Troops didn't hold back antiwar feelings on my account.
      • Well, except for the furniture part of the nursery, which apparently won't get here until sometime in Fall 2010 (actually, the new predicted delivery date is ‘in two or three weeks ‘- hey, don't rush on our account, people).
      • He was grieved on their account and did not know how to protect them.
      • But, as you also probably realize, I'm basically just a naive idealist; so, truly, don't get too worked up on my account.

  • on account of

    • Because of.

      they had closed early on account of the snow
      Example sentencesExamples
      • It is understood her sentence was cut to 12 years on account of her guilty plea.
      • Today I heard that the woman in question lost her job at the bank on account of those pictures!
      • Even if this perceptiojn is distorted, it should be no surprise that prices have risen on account of the changeover.
      • Sports cars have been called selfish cars on account of the fact you don't have to give anyone a lift but one cupholder was a bit much!
      • As a result of this, I have not been able to take any time off on account of not feeling well.
      • Except it wasn't running on Monday lunchtime, on account of all the people in the way.
      • I threw a load of shirts out some years ago, on account of them being never worn and almost irrevocably corrupted by dust.
      • Well, if I pass away tonight, it will probably be on account of overwork and not as a result of hunger.
      • This has happened mainly on account of losing the ability to live with differences.
      • While the film has been canned, its release has been delayed on account of the Cricket World Cup.
      • Bangalore is just one city, which on account of its IT bigwigs, is in the limelight.
      • Then a friend of mine has been having a pretty rough period on account of his brother's illness.
      • There is a huge loss of livestock on account of shortage of fodder and water.
      • The need for the Thames Estuary sea forts arose in the last war on account of the mining of our waters with magnetic mines.
      • I yelled after them, but they didn't hear me on account of already being fifty metres away.
      • Medical services in any ideal place should not be denied to anyone on account of inability to pay.
      • Thames Water says there might be a hosepipe ban on account of there not being enough rain over the winter.
      • Traffic accidents continue to claim a large number of lives on account of several factors.
      • But that cannot be decided by us on account of what we read in the press, only by the inquiry.
      • We had decided to go down the river first, on account of car parking.
      Synonyms
      because of, owing to, due to, as a consequence of, thanks to, through, by reason of, by virtue of, in virtue of, on grounds of, in view of

  • on no account

    • Under no circumstances.

      on no account let anyone know we're interested
      Example sentencesExamples
      • When the aforementioned boss sends you an e-mail entitled ‘Promotion notice’, on no account should you infer that it involves you.
      • Effectively they had drawn a line in the sand and told us that the overdraft facilities they had given us were on no account to be exceeded.
      • People are increasingly aware that on no account must economic development be achieved at the expense of the environment.
      • The CPS, in turn, says it would act only after receiving a file from the police, and that on no account would there be a political decision to prosecute.
      • The residents of the area have made it quite clear that on no account will this be tolerated in this built up area.
      • You need special material and on no account simply use darkened glass, old spectacles or glasses.
      • Before we meet, her PR tells me that on no account will she answer any questions on the subject.
      • Don't set up camp, German-style, on a sun lounger - and on no account assume it is okay to borrow someone else's suncream.
      • And I will on no account drink more than one glass of wine.
      • The public are reminded that on no account should any details of their credit card be supplied to callers, no matter how plausible they may be.
      • They may believe they can now handle alcohol, but it needs to be made clear to patients and carers that on no account should drinking (however little) be resumed.
      • I had been told that on no account should I annoy him, simply note down his behaviour and report it on a detailed and complex form, which was then circulated to numerous agencies.
      • Sure NYC has its fair share of dirt, strange smells and crazy people: before I went there, I was under the impression that I must on no account make eye contact with anyone, use the subway or set foot Central Park.
      • And on no account, Paul says, should any of his pupils settle for performing in bars. ‘Bands that are willing to play the Tuesday night circuit are going to play the Tuesday night circuit for ever.’
      • The unit closed and barred its doors and we were told on no account to leave our stations for the duration of the emergency.
      • So while I wasn't actually denied a certificate, I was warned that on no account must I dive deeper than 10m.
      • But on no account should you withdraw your money because you won't be allowed to open another Mini Cash ISA until the next tax year.
      • PC users are advised to delete suspicious messages and on no account to open attachments matching the description for the virus.
      • I put all seven tablets in an envelope with directions to take one at bedtime and one early morning with a warning on no account to exceed the prescribed dose.
      • Even if you do nothing else in Madrid, on no account should you miss the Prado.
      • These can match the jacket, but on no account should you be seen in a matching cap.
      Synonyms
      never, certainly not, absolutely not, definitely not, not in any event, by no means

  • on one's own account

    • 1For one's own purposes; for oneself.

      he began trading on his own account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Are you seriously suggesting that you were trading on your own account?
      • Why is it restricted to sole traders who conduct business on their own account, or as a partner, and it is not available to anyone who uses a company?
      • The central question is whether the person who has been engaged to perform the services is performing them as a person in business on his own account.
      • In 1867 he was ignominiously removed from his post, possibly for buying in Spain on his own account and for other art dealing activities, but also due to internal tensions within the museum.
      • Among the provisions which could be reviewed was one which prohibits brokers from trading on their own account.
      • How bad would things have to get before the lure of easy money over-rode somebody's scruples and induced them to run things on their own account instead of their company's?
      • Very little real mining occurred at any of the two mines during the next twenty-five years, although some individual prospectors and miners did have a try at times on their own account.
      • These range from a traditional task of investment banks in advising, underwriting, and distributing new issues of securities, through to dealing on their own account on securities and derivatives markets.
      • It is understood that where there are new business, there are self-employed and empowered economic agents partaking in the mainstream on their own account.
      • By this time, both brothers were trading on their own account quite successfully.
      1. 1.1Alone; unaided.
        he'll be investigating on his own account
        Example sentencesExamples
        • These moral codes may be forces for good or forces for ill, but they clearly have survival power on their own account.
        • Small-scale breeders are becoming less frightened of the system and are beginning to feel that they may be able to tackle it on their own account.
        • Work had been slow lately and he had to go hunt on his own account, which is why he was out that night.
        • If Tyler had done it, Wesley would've been furious, but Kate did it on her own account… therefore, the damage was far worse.
        • Sawhney isn't comfortable with this underground tag and to prove it, he follows a short jaunt around Britain on his own account with a slot supporting Sting on a European tour.
        • Not that he's repeating himself; the new images stand on their own account.
        • Every decision that I have reached in relation to this particular Inquiry has been on my own account, without any consultation with any members of that group.
        • But Hollywood kitsch was tame in comparison to that which Dali was capable of creating on his own account.
        • After Lully's death in 1687 Collasse began composing operas on his own account, but with relatively little success.
        • His band includes the extrovert British violinist Billy Thompson, who is worth the ticket price on his own account.
        • So artworks begin to take on the aura of talismanic objects of prestige and power which have value on their own account.
        • But was this matter too great for you to handle on your own account that you had to call for the officers?
        • Quite apart from the general role played by monastic orders in the history of wine, certain individual monks and monasteries enjoy vinous fame on their own account.
        • Current notions of the self focus on agency: the ability to act on one's own account, although with reference to others.
        • It is quite possible to leave individual doctors to take action on their own account, and it would be better to do that than to have a poorly run national screening programme.
        • X did not receive a payout as her injuries were bruises, not broken bones, and she had collapsed on her own account.
        • On the mainland he now explored on his own account covering an area from Mount Remarkable to Cape Jervis.
        • Besides which, no doubt, the King is popular on his own account; and has been exercising the gift he has for saying happy things, or things which exhibit his own character in a happy light.
        • This year she made 32 contributions on her own account and three jointly with her husband.
        • The king bravely managed to regain his balance whilst in the saddle and nobly dismounted on his own account before later collapsing.

  • on this (or that) account

    • As a result; consequently.

      he was very energetic and on this account was entrusted with all the most difficult work
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Everyone is fond of relating their own exploits and they are on this account a nuisance to one to the other.
      • Today all people are children to me, and all are dearer on that account.
      • Departures from Malta for the return journey were never delayed on this account.
      • I have not heard whether they have reached you and I am anxious on this account.
      • He does not disappoint anyone on this account.
      • Books reflect the mental atmosphere in which they were born, and on that account cannot expect to live forever.
      • She was always repelled by affectation in young or old, and was, perhaps unconsciously, a little unsympathetic toward children on this account.
      • The effect of never having the issues resolved is incalculable but not to be dismissed on that account.
      • I do not love you less on that account.
      • They were attacked on this account.

  • settle (or square) accounts with

    • Have revenge on.

      an embittered Charlotte is determined to settle accounts with Elizabeth
      Example sentencesExamples
      • But nothing seems to preoccupy them quite as much as the urge to settle accounts with the old government.
      • Gritting their teeth, because the holy men were accustomed to other methods of settling accounts with heretics and nonbelievers.
      • Pseudoscientists are anxious to settle accounts with the Academy of Science, because the Academy is a great obstacle to these newly half-baked ‘scientists.’
      • The idea, however, was rejected because of the potential danger of using the asset forfeiture bill for settling accounts with political opponents.
      • There, too, the working class was blocked from settling accounts with fascism and capitalism.
      • On this basis, Shachtman rejected the possibility of the Soviet working class settling accounts with Stalinism through a political revolution.
      • When Hitler's armies invaded Belgium on May 10, 1940, both Flemish and Wallonian fascist parties celebrated the opportunity given them to win political power, and to settle accounts with Bolshevism.
      • Henry chose the question of ‘criminous clerks' as the issue on which to settle accounts with his archbishop.
      • Chris risks his life to save Dixie, but later claims he only did it to square accounts with Dixie for his having accepted the blame for starting their fistfight.
      • Stalin believed Hitler would never attack the Soviet Union unless or until he had settled accounts with the British empire - because to do so would expose Germany to a war against too many enemies at once.
      • These polemics, though, take on again and again an elegiac ring, as he settles accounts with the great figures who had preoccupied him throughout his life.
      • This was only part of a much larger effort by the American ruling class, after decades of political instability, to settle accounts with radicalism and socialism.
      • Rick was just going to have to forget about settling accounts with her because she was having none of it.
      • The work is about the artist's efforts to settle accounts with Bertha Alyce by ‘exposing’ her.
      • If a European referendum is held, it will be time to settle accounts with the EU kleptocracy.
      • The last years of Franco's life were marked by the political strivings of the working class to settle accounts with the dictatorship and student rebellions.
      • The Emperor returned once again to Italy, to settle accounts with the Lombard League.
      • There's a war on, you know and the business to hand is to stop it - not settle accounts with groups you don't agree with.
      • The DSS has accused the government of using the state of emergency to settle accounts with its political opponents.
      • What we may assume is that an embittered Charlotte is determined to settle accounts with Elizabeth.
      Synonyms
      get one's revenge, have one's revenge, take one's revenge, get one's revenge on, have one's revenge on, take one's revenge on, be revenged, be revenged on, revenge oneself, revenge oneself on, hit back, get back at, get, get even, get even with, even the score, even the score with, settle a score, settle the score, settle accounts, settle accounts with, give as good as one gets, play tit for tat, repay, pay someone back, give someone their just deserts, reciprocate, retaliate, retaliate against, retaliate on, take reprisals, take reprisals against, exact retribution, exact retribution on, let someone see how it feels, give someone a taste of their own medicine

  • take something into account (or take account of)

    • Consider something along with other factors before reaching a decision.

      teachers should take a child's age into account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • It is vital that risks to men, women, and children are all taken into account as being seriously important.
      • The simple truth is that a number of factors are taken into account, including circulation figures.
      • The council, by apparently not taking these factors into account, is rushing through plans which they could come to regret and that may well have serious consequences for our children.
      • These risks tend to disappear altogether when factors other than weight are taken into account.
      • It is for the tribunal as an industrial jury to take all relevant factors into account in reaching its conclusion, giving such weight to them as it considers appropriate.
      • Even after taking these factors into account, the researchers found lower cognitive development for the children of mothers who worked full-time during their child's first nine months.
      • These factors will be taken into account when the application for the Stockwell Square development is considered by the Planning Board.
      • Finance, manpower and property considerations were taken into account by decision makers who say the move reflects the Army's strategy of reallocating resources.
      • Obviously, any major troop movement must be based on a government decision that takes all relevant factors into account.
      • If the defendant wrongly takes that financial interest into account, rather than reaching the decision on legitimate planning grounds, then the decision can be challenged on ordinary judicial review grounds.
      • Furthermore, from time to time, they take these economic implications into account, along with other factors, in arriving at their decisions.
      • Owners need to take this factor into account when planning combined outdoor activities, whether a race or a Frisbee-catching activity at the local park.
      • The decisions made under this Article are declaratory, but national courts and NCAs would be bound to take them into account when reaching their own decisions.
      • A spokesman for the council said the scheme would be considered on its planning merits and the committee would take all viewpoints into account when reaching its decision.
      • Now, considering women tend to live about four years longer than men and that men tend to have more car crashes than women, it seems ridiculous that insurers are not going to be allowed to take these factors into account when assessing risk.
      • He said he hoped his views would be taken into account when a decision was made on what disciplinary action would be taken against the officer.
      • An officer characterized by such a style of leadership refrains from one-man decision-making, trusts his collective and takes its opinion into account in making decisions.
      • The council would then take all representations into account before reaching a final decision.
      • And the risks to the woman need to be properly assessed and clearly explained to her, so that she can take them into account in making her decision.
      • It should be noted, however, that several important factors are not taken into account in the calculation.
      Synonyms
      consider, take account of, take into consideration, make allowances for, respect, bear in mind, be mindful of, have regard to, reckon with, remember, mind, mark, heed, note, not forget, make provision for, take to heart, pay regard to, be guided by
      consider, take into account, take into consideration, make allowances for, respect, bear in mind, be mindful of, have regard to, reckon with, remember, mind, mark, heed, note, not forget, make provision for, take to heart, pay regard to, be guided by

  • there's no accounting for tastes (or taste)

    • proverb It's impossible to explain why different people like different things, especially those things which the speaker considers unappealing.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • I like reading a Hooton poem but there's no accounting for tastes.
      • Well, it just proves once again that there's no accounting for taste.
      • But even then, there's no accounting for taste, so I can't even categorically rule out the last bunch.
      • The right mood music can do a lot for an evening of love, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • But, I suppose there's no accounting for taste.
      • I actually enjoyed Reign Of Fire, so there's no accounting for taste.
      • Still, there's no accounting for taste - and she did, allegedly, have that tattoo on her ankle.
      • As for why he'd buy you - David's a nice guy and deserves better, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • I've never had such interest shown in my PDA, which I think is much more entertaining, not to mention more likely to contain explosives, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • They DO like Papa Roach though, so there's no accounting for taste…
      • And the only computer I had access to would immediately shut down every time I tried to log into this page (there's no accounting for tastes.)
      • As for why people have jerks in their lives, Prudie cannot help but think of the old joke: When told her son was wanted by the police, the woman said, ‘Well, there's no accounting for taste.’
      • You may be wondering why she was ever with me in the first place, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • But, as they point out there's no accounting for taste.
      • You might disagree with my view, but then there's no accounting for taste.
      • I guess there's no accounting for taste.
      • Taste might seem completely subjective - we all know the saying there's no accounting for taste.
      • I thought it was tacky with garbage music, but hey, there's no accounting for taste.
      • On the other hand my wife bought a Glock and married me, so there's no accounting for taste!
      • Not bad for a half hour or so of work; you might have thought that the enormous bounce in album sales worldwide would have been enough, but then there's no accounting for taste.

  • turn something to (good) account

    • Turn something to one's advantage.

      he turned his literary accomplishments to account in his pictures
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Of course, research in itself is no panacea, but more successful players like General Mills, Quaker Oats, Nabisco and, of course, Kraft, have turned it to good account.
      • Further a field the Blues will look to Philip Nolan, David Bermingham, Pa and Anthony Kavanagh and Gavin and Brian Walker to gain valuable possession and turn it to account.
      • We say that the correct criterion is that enunciated by Justice Hill, namely, whether the athlete has turned her skill to account, and in that inquiry the subjective purpose of the athlete is a critical thing.
      • Tangible assets, considered simply as material objects, are inert, transient and trivial, compared with the abiding efficiency of that living structure of technology that has created them and continues to turn them to account.
      • She has not been engaged in a business activity to exploit her sporting prowess or to turn her talent to account in money.
      • That is not something they can sell, and they cannot turn it to good account.
      Synonyms
      act on, take advantage of, capitalize on, use, exploit, make the most of, leap at, jump on, pounce on, seize, seize on, grasp, grab, snatch, accept, put to advantage, profit from, turn to account, cash in on

Phrasal Verbs

  • account for

    • 1Give a satisfactory record of (something, typically money, that one is responsible for)

      I had to account for every penny I spent
      Example sentencesExamples
      • The GO budget, as it is commonly referred to, accounts for money spent by central administration and its related services.
      • Assuring students that all the money would be accounted for, he said he planned to meet with the bursary yesterday to get an idea of the balance in the guild's account.
      • It did not indicate that he had not accounted for any sums of money.
      • What differentiates it from these examples and where the most stinging criticism lies concerns accounting for public money.
      • I have heard that as much as $8 billion of that money cannot be accounted for by the coalition.
      • The records were well maintained and all the money was accounted for,’ he said.
      • There are a lot of Government departments that collect revenue from the public and it is important that all the money is accounted for.
      • However, the ESB must account for all the money it spends.
      • You and I don't really want to know how much money they've actually accounted for, do we?
      • There is nothing more satisfying than knowing your entire record can be accounted for by your own hands.
      • Fiscal accountability, being very open with students on how we spend our money, accounting for every penny.
      • National has no problem in theory with devolving the management of community programmes and assets to the community itself as long as government money is accounted for.
      • They claim that all the money is accounted for because company employees always assist the dead person's relatives.
      • You can have this debt relief, but you have to observe human rights and be honest about accounting for the money, and you've got to put it into education, health care or economic development.
      • He was unable to account for the money they gave him in the 1990s.
      • Education minister Alan Johnson recognised the ‘differences of opinion’ between Mancat and the LSC but stressed the need for money to be accounted for.
      • The money collected was not accounted for but collection was done on a daily basis.
      • There were few or no controls over how that money was spent and accounted for.
      • The court also indicated that the defendants' fiduciary duty included a responsibility to account for property and money entrusted to them.
      • I'm going to be more disciplined about my spending habits, and instead of wasting money, I'll account for everything that I spend.
      1. 1.1Provide or serve as a satisfactory explanation for.
        he was brought before the Board to account for his behaviour
        Example sentencesExamples
        • Of course, classically trained economists have bandied about all manner of explanations to account for the anomaly, none of which include management nor manipulation.
        • But it was not just the fine weather that accounted for the record attendances.
        • Lastly, there is no one explanation that accounts for Rome's decline and fall.
        • Thus a scenario or process explanation which reasonably accounts for what we know at a particular point in time is not a bad thing, so long as we understand its hybrid nature.
        • The explanation cannot even account for the flood legends.
        • Pierre starts life with the belief that there must be some grand system of explanation that will account for life and justify it, and provide the sure interpretation of it.
        • Several explanations account for this lack of activism.
        • This is an absence from the historical record that must be accounted for.
        • Scientists immediately scrambled to find an explanation that could account for a persistent, recurring cycle of planet-wide species die-outs.
        • At the end of the day, we are faced with the ‘mystery of evil’, a demonic hatred that runs deeper than merely human explanations can account for.
        • It is not clear how much variance each of these two explanatory factors provides to account for psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents.
        • There is no one explanation that accounts for every feature of the grail legend.
        • Still, this sort of power-based explanation cannot account for American activism in the 1890s or 1790s.
        • However, even this neat explanation fails to account for the appalling standard of this week's releases where the mediocre (at best) rub shoulders with several of the worst films ever made.
        • Simplistic though it may seem, an elementary explanation may help to account for the gradual shift away from Augustinianism.
        • This, rather than anything to do with the specific phases of the development of IT, accounts for the recent disappointing record of productivity.
        • At least three, potentially related, explanations may account for this finding.
        • Yesterday I wrote that I thought this explanation probably accounted for most of the change in sentiment among the Spanish electorate.
        • But neither can conventional political explanations account for this policy choice.
        • Even if correct, however, this explanation would not account for the health problems of their younger daughter, who has not yet attended high school.
        Synonyms
        explain, give an explanation, come up with an explanation, explain away, answer for, give reasons for, rationalize, provide a rationale for, show grounds for, elucidate, illuminate, clear up
      2. 1.2Know the fate or whereabouts of (someone or something), especially after an accident.
        everyone was accounted for after the floods
        Example sentencesExamples
        • And think of the faith-healing couple that refuses to account for the whereabouts of their infant.
        • Their families will be aware that they cannot account for their whereabouts at that time. I'd urge them to come forward.
        • It will release or account for all Gulf War personnel whose fate is still unknown.
        • No charges were laid against them, as they could all account for their whereabouts the night Seecharan was set ablaze.
        • For your information, I can indeed account for my whereabouts when Daniel smashed his neck in.
        • Despite this, Anwar and his lawyers were able to account for his whereabouts on every single day of this three-month period.
        • Nerac's wife, Fabienne, has asked US Secretary of State Colin Powell to account for her husband's whereabouts during a news conference in Brussels, Belgium.
        • Kerry's whereabouts must be known and accounted for most, if not all, of that time.
        • Authorities have never publicly accounted for his whereabouts during the time of the alleged motel encounter.
        • As part of his defence, Anwar's lawyers accounted for his whereabouts at the time in question - 7.45 p.m. - for every day over that period.
        • Being unable to account for the whereabouts of even one-fifth that many weapons would be alarming, according to former ATF agents, even for a store the size of Bull's Eye.
        • All major components of the airplane were accounted for at the accident scene.
        • Of course, the prosecution could have pointed out that still wouldn't account for the man's whereabouts in the first three or the last two innings.
        • Why cannot the council account for the whereabouts of the above items or the disappearance of upwards of 20 high quality suits?
        • This is a massive stockpile of biological weapons that has never been accounted for and is capable of killing millions.
        • It is claimed that a number of FRU officers cannot account for their whereabouts on March 17.

    • 2Succeed in killing, destroying, or defeating.

      a mishit drive accounted for Jones, who had scored 32
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Earlier in the week the Eire Og men defeated Michael Davitts in the semi final while Rathvilly accounted for Tinryland in the second semi final.
      • In the quarterfinals Carlow C.B.S. defeated Col. Iosagain, Portarlington while St. Kieran's accounted for Ballyfin.
      • At adult level both junior teams were successful with the junior squad defeating Eire Og and the Junior squad accounting for Kilbride.
      • The winners dominated the second period and a lack of power up front was a major factor in this defeat for the West who accounted for the East Division in the opening round the previous week.
      • After a relatively slow start the Lismore team came home with a barnstorming finish to easily account for the highly fancied Coffs Harbour and Armidale teams.
      • After comfortably accounting for Haydock away and Newton-le Willows at home they destroyed the hopes of Highfield who themselves had aspirations to become league leaders.
      • Laois accounted for Kildare and Carlow while Carlow defeated Kildare.
      • On the other side Naas pulled out all the stops in defeating Kilkenny and they went on to easily account for Portlaoise in the final.
      • They accounted for 14 of the 18 enemy aircraft, destroyed at a cost of eight British lives.
      • Rooney charged around for the remainder of the match, furious with his - and his team's - inability to defeat the kind of opposition that has to be accounted for if the Premiership title is to be won.
      • In Major League, undefeated Workers held off a spirited Norths charge to retain the top position, whereas Brothers easily accounted for last-placed Redbirds in a seven innings encounter.
      Synonyms
      dispose of, finish off, make an end of, deal with, put paid to, take care of, clear up, mop up, eliminate, kill, destroy, dispatch, put out of action, incapacitate

    • 3Supply or make up (a specified amount or proportion)

      social security accounts for about a third of total public spending
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Shocking statistics show one-third of workplace accidents occur in the agriculture sector which accounts for just 7.5% of the workforce.
      • Motorists who get behind the wheel when tired account for 20 per cent of Britain's road accidents.
      • In 1969, he accounted for 5% of record sales in the U.S.A., outselling the Beatles.
      • More than half of Scotland's councils do not offer school swimming lessons to primary children, and yet recent figures have shown drowning accidents are accounting for nearly 100 young people's deaths annually.
      • Money laundering, which accounts for £18 bn a year in the UK, is another key issue facing the financial watchdog, and enforcing new regulations will be a key test for him.
      • In 2003, there were 83,000 babies born in Shanghai, of which the migrant population was responsible for 26,000, accounting for about one third of the total.
      • The money from News Corporation accounts for almost half of the NZRU's revenue.
      • Labourers who plunge to the ground in building site accidents accounted for more than half of all construction deaths, and nearly a third of major injuries across Britain, in 2001-02.
      • Ten trades in Abbey shares were recorded, accounting for almost €100,000.
      • The money accounted for three-quarters of the profits made by Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd over the past two years.
      • Statistics show that heavy vehicles account for a large number of accidents.
      • But such accidents account for only one-third of all oil pollution.
      • Children account for a large proportion of casualties because they represent 39 per cent of the overall population in the eight hardest-hit countries.
      • Irish consumers also have a unique taste for high dry matter potatoes, with the varieties Kerr's Pink, Record and Rooster accounting for over 60% of total production.
      • Whereas manufacturing once accounted for almost 40% of the UK's output, it now represents less than half that.
      • High utilizers of medical services comprise a small proportion of all patients, yet they account for a disproportionate amount of expenses in the health care system.
      • This represents approximately one patient per day and accounts for only a small proportion of attendances with chest pain to an urban emergency department.
      • Motorbikes represent just 1% of all vehicles on Scottish roads, but they account for more than 14% of road accidents.
      • Motorways are statistically the safest roads, carrying 15 per cent of traffic and accounting for three per cent of accidents.
      • And by Wednesday Jackson broke records on Yahoo, accounting for nearly 20% of all terms searched on the site.
      Synonyms
      constitute, make up, comprise, form, compose, be responsible for, represent, supply, provide, give

Origin

Middle English (in the sense 'counting', 'to count'): from Old French acont (noun), aconter (verb), based on conter 'to count'.

  • count from Middle English:

    The verb to count is from Latin computare ‘to calculate’, the root also of computer, account (Middle English), and recount (Late Middle English) ‘tell’ (which can also be used for both ‘narrate’ and ‘count’). Counters (Middle English) were originally used to help in counting; in the late 17th century the word came to be used for a surface across which goods were exchanged for money. The title of the count or foreign nobleman, corresponding to the English earl, is a completely different word, which was introduced by the Normans and comes from Latin comes ‘companion, overseer, attendant’. County (Middle English) is from the same root, and seems originally to have referred to the lands or territory of a count, or to a meeting held to discuss the business of the county. See also chicken, duke

Rhymes

amount, count, fount, miscount, mount, no-account, surmount
noun.1
phr.
phr.v.
 
 

Definition of account in US English:

account

nounəˈkaʊntəˈkount

  • 1A report or description of an event or experience.

    a detailed account of what has been achieved
    Example sentencesExamples
    • A world away from dry accounts of historical events, it succeeds in shedding much new light on the 1905 Russian Revolution in an accessible and exciting way.
    • There have been several remarkably detailed newspaper accounts of an event that could only have been witnessed by those directly involved - and none of these has yet spoken publicly.
    • There, anyone with online access can post and read news stories and personal accounts of events, such as demonstrations, thus opening up media in new ways.
    • What follows is a brief account of my experiences and a reconstruction of some events from discussions with the victims.
    • A reader of this blog sent me an account of his experience of the campaign, and of its effect on voters.
    • Although this is a historical event, the accounts include variations as far as details are concerned.
    • Dr Friedman's report then gives an account of D.'s further experiences while he was in care.
    • Not only was I reading about the lives of my ancestors, but about their friends and acquaintances too - and accounts of historical events which my uncle recorded in his diary on the day they happened.
    • As you rightly stated, the story reported was an accurate account of the events in the Council Chamber that evening.
    • Thus she began her account with a detailed description of the appropriate behaviour of a collector engaging at first hand with the people.
    • Even if they are somewhat distorted or adapted, they remain accounts of experienced events, and as such they are valuable sources for the historian.
    • This is a fascinating collection of poems, essays, reports and accounts based on the experience of work and working.
    • Users can post and read first - hand accounts of fellow travellers experiences.
    • Lots of first person accounts of historical events.
    • Historical accounts describe the young princess as exceedingly tall, thin, pock-marked, and plain, but with a generous nature.
    • Morality and ethics consist of prescriptive statements about how one ought to behave; they do not purport to be descriptive accounts of actual historical behaviour.
    • His book, Pity the Nation, is an account of the events of those years and his own experiences reporting them.
    • Colin gives his girlfriend and neighbours a detailed account of the court proceedings and events leading up to a murder.
    • Most of the accounts describe surrealistic events that usually involve cheating death - but not always.
    • Based on eyewitness accounts, the report described how Pashtun villages were attacked after being disarmed by local militia commanders.
    Synonyms
    description, report, version, story, narration, narrative, statement, news, explanation, exposition, interpretation, communiqué, recital, rendition, sketch, delineation, portrayal, tale
    1. 1.1 An interpretation or rendering of a piece of music.
      a lively account of Offenbach's score
      Example sentencesExamples
      • I haven't heard better accounts of the Holst and Vaughan Williams works.
      • Let me say, however, that I have never heard an account of the Ninth that was better played or sung.
      • Silverthorne and his accompanist, Jacobson, give dark, richly passionate accounts.
      • I think both Bernstein's accounts (on Sony and Deutsche Grammophon) authoritative.
      • For a conductor not known for his accounts of modern music, Szell did a great deal of it and almost always superbly.
      • Oleg Marshev is a fine interpreter of the Piano Concerto having already recorded excellent accounts of the Shostakovich and Prokofiev concertos.
      • Jennie Tourel, one of the smartest, most musicianly singers of our time, delivers a passionate account.
      • It is a great pity that Maag did not find time to explore the wide oeuvre of Liszt's symphonic poems as on these two accounts, he was a born interpreter in this field.
      • For modern instrument accounts of Mozart's Sonatas for Violin and Piano, Steinberg and Uchida go to the head of the class.
      • Elder certainly gave a brilliant account of the piece.
      • The recording is quite superb however and is definitely preferable to Bakels on Naxos or the ageing Boult and Previn who remain however, very valid accounts on all planes.
      • Schleiermacher is already famous for his Satie interpretations and he gives well nigh definitive accounts of the music on disc.
      • This is surely one of the best accounts of the concerto to be released lately.
      • The Concertos are also impressive accounts, featuring decent accompaniment by Robert Stankovsky and this Kosice-based ensemble.
      • All round, a flawless account, celebrating a Schubert who is as much the son of Haydn and Mozart as the father of Schumann and Brahms.
      • Off the top of my head, I can think of several wonderful accounts of the Tchaikovsky, but when I get to Beethoven, I become rather picky.
      • His Mahler Tenth is still viable as a recommendable choice, as are his accounts of Shostakovich symphonies.
      • They give a fine account of the Overture in C minor which has some delightful work for bassoon.
      • We have already had excellent accounts of Beethoven and Mozart symphonies and serenades and now it is the turn of some exquisite Haydn and Schubert symphonies.
      • Even so, Harnoncourt delivers one of the most rhythmically incisive accounts of the scherzo, sharper even than Szell's.
      Synonyms
      performance, interpretation, rendering, rendition, reading, recital, playing, singing, execution

  • 2A record or statement of financial expenditure and receipts relating to a particular period or purpose.

    the ledger contains all the income and expense accounts
    he submitted a quarterly account
    Example sentencesExamples
    • I have among my financial memorabilia its 1968 accounts, when it was still known as Wiles Group.
    • Franchisers' financial statements and profit-and-loss accounts, at least in the last two years, should be examined.
    • The advanced course is aimed at providing farmers with the expertise in using packages such as breeding charts, farm accounts and VAT recording and returns.
    • In theory, there are regulators to keep an eye on corporate mischief - in practice, no regulator or guardian can hope to penetrate the complexity of modern financial accounts.
    • Today's businesses are managed by individuals who are obsessed with the minutiae of manipulating financial accounts.
    • They also suggested he could call an extraordinary general meeting to get a look at Manchester United's financial accounts.
    • Any expenditure included in the accounts where receipts or vouchers were not available was properly made in connection with the carrying on of the company's business.
    • Tenth, engage the services of a reputed auditing/accountancy firm to review and report on the financial statements and audited accounts of the NSAs.
    • Mr Hardy added that all businesses should also ensure the date of each purchase is clearly recorded in their accounts because the time periods for capital allowance schemes are often time-sensitive.
    • Compliance involves examining a set of key accounts including payroll, financial reporting, purchasing, payables and billing.
    • Another example, in order to have good financial practice, all local governments have to have financial accounts in the same format.
    • Groups operating within The Priestley will now run as individual business organisations, with their own financial accounts.
    • It alleged that ERF's accounts and financial statements were misstated.
    • The Appeal did not produce annual income and expenditure accounts or balance sheets.
    • The second is that firms do not have adequate systems and controls in place to deal with a potentially high volume of accounts or adequate financial resources to support CTF business.
    • This is to facilitate companies who are working to tight deadlines with their end of year financial accounts.
    • Profits at the Port of Cork Company more than halved last year, according to its latest financial accounts.
    • While the insolvency practitioners continue to cast their eye over City's financial accounts, the Trust are now putting fundraising plans in place.
    • Details of the transfer are included in the notes to the 2004 financial accounts.
    • The Garda Commissioner will have to stand over the financial accounts of the force under new measures being introduced by the Government.
    • Because it applies across most naturally occurring number distributions, it can also be used to detect fraud in financial accounts, and to spot faked results in clinical trials.
    Synonyms
    financial record, book, ledger, journal, balance sheet, financial statement, results
    1. 2.1accounts The department of a company that deals with financial accounts.
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Keith's appraisal - it's staff appraisal time and although other staff talk about their career dreams, David tries to get to know Keith from Accounts whose strengths are. er… Accounts.
      • A product of Maharaja's College, Mysore, where he did his MA in Economics, Mr. Ramaswamy joined the Indian Audit and Accounts Service in 1951.
      • Two of these men work in the Department's Accounts unit.
      • By 1861 Whiffin was Chief Clerk in the Cash and Accounts Section.

  • 3An arrangement by which a body holds funds on behalf of a client or supplies goods or services to the client on credit.

    a bank account
    I began buying things on account
    charge it to my account
    I wanted to get some money from the ATM and check my account
    Example sentencesExamples
    • The Treasury has promised that the first Child Trust Fund accounts will be up and running by April 2005 at the latest.
    • They can then ‘pyramid’ this debt with a further 16 credit union accounts and borrow a further €64,000.
    • Too many suppliers have accounts more than 90 days past due.
    • Nicol is one of only 30% of parents who have redeemed their vouchers to date - paying them into child trust fund accounts at Britannia Building Society.
    • Would there be restrictions on the types of investments that could be made, say to mutual funds or IRA accounts?
    • The money market earns higher interest rates than their savings bank and credit union accounts.
    • In all, internet fraud accounted for a quarter of the total £219.4m illegally taken from UK consumers' credit and debit card accounts in the first six months of this year.
    • This has the effect of cutting mortgage interest when your cheque account is in credit, or increasing it when funds run short.
    • Oh don't worry about the cost just add it to my account and bill me at the end of the month.
    • If you fail to make payments on your credit card accounts, these funds will be used to cover your obligations.
    • You must pay at least £1, 000 a month into the Moneyback account to qualify.
    • Funds argue that small accounts are expensive, which raises the cost of investing for all shareholders.
    • EFTPOS allows access to both credit-card accounts or own funds by means of debit cards.
    • They contribute between €1 and €5 per week and it is kept on account in the local Credit Union.
    • Child Trust Fund accounts are available from banks, building societies and other financial organisations.
    • Stamp duty is payable on credit card accounts maintained by banks on April 1 each year.
    • Large quantities of Swiss francs credited to private accounts in various Swiss banks.
    • By the time the error was discovered, B had withdrawn the funds credited to his account by the F Bank.
    • No transaction charges apply if your account remains in credit throughout the entire charging quarter.
    • You can pay anything from £50 a month upwards into the account, or from £250 as a lump sum.
    • Furthermore, these dividend accounts are being credited with interest.
    Synonyms
    bank account
    1. 3.1 A client having an account with a supplier.
      selling bibles to established accounts in the North
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Also list key accounts, potential customers, market survey data, drawings, agreements, and financial projections to the plan.
      • Brown & Sons Inc., where he handled retail and institutional accounts.
      • Inspiration to pursue corporate accounts came after a customer made a request for 500 crystal bowls.
      • That's especially helpful when I'm taking over an account from another sales rep.
      • The agency will take over the account from the Helme Partnership at the end of this month.
      • The promo won the brand 100 new retail accounts, while awakening interest from other Hollywood studios for future tie-ins.
      • They also liked being able to preview jobs before printing, to establish corporate accounts, and above all, to get their orders quickly.
      • Unlike other firms cited in the story, Merrill does not disclose trading volume or the number of accounts in its retail brokerage business.
      • Healthy price competition between multiple vendors vying for an account benefits the customer.
      • Within three years, we had 700 accounts across Europe, making us the largest suppliers of ladies' golfwear to the European market.
      • In Fairfield, SoBe will run local ads flagging its loyal retail accounts.
      • These retail accounts include leading surf retail chains as well as single store surf and extreme sports shops.
      • It talks to the culture of differences between retail accounts and the manufacturer.
    2. 3.2 A contract to do work periodically for a client.
      another agency was awarded the account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • In the nine months before the Unilever account, BT Global Services won £2bn of contracts.
      Synonyms
      agreement, commitment, arrangement, settlement, undertaking, understanding, compact, covenant, pact, bond

  • 4An arrangement by which a user is given personalized access to a computer, website, or application, typically by entering a username and password.

    we've reset your password to prevent others from accessing your account
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Please send job offers to me via my iChat account.
    • Your account can only be used for a single internet session at any one time and for no more than 24 hours in any one day.
    • The primary goal of the hackers, the company said, were the Gmail accounts of human rights activists, although none of the targeted accounts were breached.
    • This computer doesn't multitask very well, particularly if you have multiple user accounts set up via Windows XP.
    • Once attackers have access to an email account password, they login to the account (example: hotmail, gmail, etc), and acquire the owner's contact list of other email accounts.
    • Choose or create an account and click "Next."
    • They were receiving frantic calls regarding accounts and computers crashing all weekend long, and they had no idea why.
    • Make sure it isn't a password that you are already using for another account on your Mac.
    • Someone's been going thru my email, tweets and Facebook accounts for years.
    • Many of these systems have default admin accounts, non-updated software, no security patches, etc.

  • 5Importance.

    money was of no account to her
    Example sentencesExamples
    • That may be of no account in the general scheme of things, but it calls into question the reasons for the Minister's office making such an obvious error.
    • The individual building blocks of words are in themselves of little account.
    • Worst of all, she treated him like he was of no account at all.
    • Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church.
    • The fact that he has collected so many baubles in the glory years is of no account to the second row.
    • At the time of the Reformation the body was deemed to be of little account when there was a soul to be saved.
    • Even establishment politics was of little account in the small-town press.
    • In most cases, that extraneous text will be of little account - but in others, it may be quite sensitive.
    • It is of no account: for the royals, the crisis has passed.
    • As with his son, his death was treated as a matter of no account.
    • The fact that in typical sized prints the difference is vanishingly small is of no account.
    • The absence of dramatic action was of little account to audiences used to the lyrical pastoral play.
    • The self-evident fact that the numbers applying for asylum correlate precisely with countries where a dog's life would be a step up is of no account.
    • The fact that a few corrupt judges disagree with this is of no account - look up the law and read it for yourself if you do not believe me.
    • Others are treated as if they are of little account and their views discounted.
    • Throughout history, God has chosen those who are of no account in the world's eyes to receive and testify to the gospel.
    • The effect on even the far south of country will be of no account.
    • The clear subtext is that what goes on in the festering ghettos is of no account: just keep it away from us and our children.
    • You even have it if the remnant of your unfinished cup of tea has been accidentally thrown away by someone else, who's come upon it and thought it unwanted, of no account.
    • The fact that the cubs were orphans, abandoned when their mother was run over by a car, was of no account.
    Synonyms
    importance, import, significance, consequence, moment, momentousness, substance, note, mark, prominence, value, weightiness, weight, concern, interest, gravity, seriousness
verbəˈkaʊntəˈkount

  • with object and complement Consider or regard in a specified way.

    her visit could not be accounted a success
    he accounted himself the unluckiest man alive
    Example sentencesExamples
    • Yet if the minister's professional reputation was salvaged, Bellievre's mission to England cannot be accounted a success.
    • This is accounted a U.N. success.
    • In 1862 Deck took part in the International Exhibition in London, which he accounted a great success.
    Synonyms
    consider, regard as, reckon, hold to be, think, think of as, look on as, view as, see as, take for, judge, adjudge, count, deem, rate, gauge, interpret as

Phrases

  • by (or from) all accounts

    • According to what one has heard or read.

      by all accounts he is a pretty nice guy
      Example sentencesExamples
      • And from all accounts, there have been several such fatalities.
      • And from all accounts, many of the residents there have chosen to leave that area.
      • This, from all accounts, may be an annual event and everyone who attended had a ball.
      • However, from all accounts, our Juvenile athletes appear to be in splendid form.
      • Similarly, whatever is said on radio is taken as gospel by undiscerning listeners who, from all accounts, comprise the clear majority.
      • Jones, by all accounts, is improved this season in build and mind.
      • Yet, from all accounts, she came pretty close to erecting a large shopping complex which would have become a rather incongruous backdrop to the Taj Mahal.
      • Sam was, by all accounts, a practical hands-on man whose grip had the grit of hard work.
      • She went ahead with it, and from all accounts, it was an extremely emotional, moving experience.
      • But, from all accounts, most thong wearers do claim a sense of self-assurance and freedom.
      • He was a very good musician and, from all accounts, a very kind human being, and he will be widely missed.
      • A great business plan from all accounts but no real backing.
      • Your marriage, from all accounts, isn't a happy one.
      • It won Gold at this year's award advertising ceremony and, by all accounts, is earning gold at the tills.
      • And by all accounts, Des is having an inspirational effect on the young members of the cast.
      • No matter that from all accounts, including this Sunday morning's, his cricketing abilities ranked somewhere near mine.
      • The publisher was also, by all accounts, a damn good copy editor.
      • He was, by all accounts, a crude chap who, when he cursed, did so to effect.
      • I think it's certainly good news that the action that happened overseas has happened quickly and from all accounts there's no evidence of any athletes actually using this new substance.
      • Happy to report the Hungary Festival in Japan, by all accounts, was an overwhelming success.
      Synonyms
      reputedly, supposedly, according to popular belief, so the story goes, so i'm told, so people say, by repute, allegedly, putatively, apparently, seemingly, ostensibly

  • call (or bring) someone to account

    • Require someone to explain a mistake or poor performance.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • His audience must decide whether these claims are credible and whether to endorse him or call him to account.
      • She will not be buried until somebody is brought to account for what happened.
      • Second, if you violate that trust, you will be called to account, no matter how powerful, no matter how wealthy.
      • After that you did not even bring him to account, other than that he ‘made a mistake’, after which everything passed with no punishment.
      • It's time that he was called to account for his acts of aggression.
      • It is interesting that they are not called to account for this startling performance.
      • At least with the politicians you know where they stand, you can call them to account, you can go and see them and they can't hide.
      • You could argue that the mechanisms have worked, they have been called to account and found lacking.
      • It was the bloggers, invoking their own standards - not a code but an evolving culture - that called them to account.
      • He said the case was a clear warning to people offering alternative medicine and ‘miracle cures’ that they will be called to account.
      • The State was called to account at an international meeting, but they did not attend.
      • So now the time has come to call them to account: Judgment Day has arrived for the judges.
      • It is past time that the Star Tribune is called to account.
      • Much more effective, she says, is to gather intelligence about the drugs masterminds - then bring them to account before the courts themselves.
      • Members would work closely with other organisations and call them to account if they did not meet the needs of local people.
      • They could call me to account when my actions didn't match my professed beliefs.
      • If any pharmacist has breached the law they will be called to account.
      • The journalists dared not transmit anything for which they might be called to account later.
      • What is more, there is no powerful outside force that can call us to account - the change will have to come from within.
      • Once upon a time making an oath meant that we acknowledged a higher power was witnessing our statement, and stood ready to call us to account.
      Synonyms
      scold, chastise, upbraid, berate, castigate, lambaste, rebuke, reprimand, reproach, reprove, admonish, remonstrate with, lecture, criticize, censure

  • give a good (or bad) account of oneself

    • Make a favorable (or unfavorable) impression through one's performance.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • Gilmour is confident that both his fighters will give a good account of themselves on a bill which is being televised live by Sky.

  • keep an account of

    • Keep a record of.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • Normally the operator kept an account of the person's name and amount owed and expected payment every two to four weeks.
      • Buy a little book ruled for the purpose for pounds, shillings and pence and keep an account of cash received and expended.
      • Somehow he kept an account of these labyrinthine dealings, for the village court records were faultless.
      • Also keeping an account of the goings on was Paddy Maher, originally from Rathleague.
      • They were also told that 10 percent must be saved, 10 percent given to charity, and they had to ‘keep an account of how we spent or saved the other 80 percent’.
      • Chairman of the Greater Manchester Police Authority, Derek Osbaldestin, said: ‘We agreed that everyone would keep an account of the time and resources taken up dealing with the problem and how much the policing operation cost us.’
      • The locality collecting this amount should also have the right to spend and keep an account of such amounts.

  • leave something out of account

    • Fail or decline to consider a factor.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • He will be neither consoled nor assured to be told that the prejudicial information was left out of account.
      • It seems to me that it would be clearly wrong to leave those costs out of account since they must form part of the global view.
      • In my opinion it would not be fair, just or reasonable, in any assessment of the loss caused by the birth of the child, to leave these benefits out of account [those are benefits from having a child as a member of one's family].
      • That conclusion, Mr Phillips says, flies in the face of the evidence recorded at paragraph 86 and shows that it was left out of account.
      • If the motive or hope of later obtaining a tax benefit is left out of account, the purchase of shares by a dealer in shares and their later sale must unambiguously be classed as a trading transaction.
      • If I might say so, the attitude adopted by the judge was that which would perhaps appeal to most lawyers experienced in tax matters if Community law considerations could be left out of account.
      • The Court of Appeal left this jurisprudence out of account.

  • on someone's account

    • For a specified person's benefit.

      don't bother on my account
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Our sincere thanks to Ray for giving up his Saturday on our account.
      • But please, don't stop name-dropping your glamorous existence in the sweaty cosmopolis on my account.
      • I'll venture down to earth as an angel and put in a good word with the Sovereign on your account, get her to mention you more often in this year's Christmas speech.
      • True, I was stuck, wet, worn out and thirsty, but I'd done hypothermia and dehydration before, and I didn't want anyone put out on my account.
      • In most cases I'm sure that the deceased would have preferred that the business of the Borough should not be disrupted on their account.
      • He died in our place, on our account, that he might bring us near to God.
      • There is a Jewish prayer in which we declare to God that we forgive anyone who has harmed us in any incarnation, we ask for forgiveness in turn and pray that God will not punish anyone on our account.
      • I didn't want my boss to lose her job on my account.
      • But if I can conclude from the evaluation that this failure is on my account then I will have to leave.
      • Look, I'll even accept 4's, but if you plan to go lower, don't put yourself out on my account.
      • He was grieved on their account and did not know how to protect them.
      • Well, except for the furniture part of the nursery, which apparently won't get here until sometime in Fall 2010 (actually, the new predicted delivery date is ‘in two or three weeks ‘- hey, don't rush on our account, people).
      • We quickly intervened, but the damage had been done and we felt terrible that this had happened on our account.
      • Troops didn't hold back antiwar feelings on my account.
      • The closest you can get to an issue of deprivation of opportunity is through the wife's evidence and she does not ever seem to have communicated to him, on her own account or on his account.
      • I feel guilty on their account, and again, I feel it's entirely my fault.
      • I held out my arms in response, and watched my breath steam into the morning air as I shouted, ‘Don't bother on my account.
      • But, as you also probably realize, I'm basically just a naive idealist; so, truly, don't get too worked up on my account.

  • on account of

    • Because of.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • Sports cars have been called selfish cars on account of the fact you don't have to give anyone a lift but one cupholder was a bit much!
      • This has happened mainly on account of losing the ability to live with differences.
      • Except it wasn't running on Monday lunchtime, on account of all the people in the way.
      • But that cannot be decided by us on account of what we read in the press, only by the inquiry.
      • Even if this perceptiojn is distorted, it should be no surprise that prices have risen on account of the changeover.
      • Well, if I pass away tonight, it will probably be on account of overwork and not as a result of hunger.
      • Medical services in any ideal place should not be denied to anyone on account of inability to pay.
      • Today I heard that the woman in question lost her job at the bank on account of those pictures!
      • As a result of this, I have not been able to take any time off on account of not feeling well.
      • There is a huge loss of livestock on account of shortage of fodder and water.
      • I yelled after them, but they didn't hear me on account of already being fifty metres away.
      • While the film has been canned, its release has been delayed on account of the Cricket World Cup.
      • Bangalore is just one city, which on account of its IT bigwigs, is in the limelight.
      • The need for the Thames Estuary sea forts arose in the last war on account of the mining of our waters with magnetic mines.
      • Traffic accidents continue to claim a large number of lives on account of several factors.
      • It is understood her sentence was cut to 12 years on account of her guilty plea.
      • Thames Water says there might be a hosepipe ban on account of there not being enough rain over the winter.
      • We had decided to go down the river first, on account of car parking.
      • Then a friend of mine has been having a pretty rough period on account of his brother's illness.
      • I threw a load of shirts out some years ago, on account of them being never worn and almost irrevocably corrupted by dust.
      Synonyms
      because of, owing to, due to, as a consequence of, thanks to, through, by reason of, by virtue of, in virtue of, on grounds of, in view of

  • on no account

    • Under no circumstances.

      on no account let anyone know we're interested
      Example sentencesExamples
      • PC users are advised to delete suspicious messages and on no account to open attachments matching the description for the virus.
      • People are increasingly aware that on no account must economic development be achieved at the expense of the environment.
      • Before we meet, her PR tells me that on no account will she answer any questions on the subject.
      • These can match the jacket, but on no account should you be seen in a matching cap.
      • I put all seven tablets in an envelope with directions to take one at bedtime and one early morning with a warning on no account to exceed the prescribed dose.
      • Sure NYC has its fair share of dirt, strange smells and crazy people: before I went there, I was under the impression that I must on no account make eye contact with anyone, use the subway or set foot Central Park.
      • And I will on no account drink more than one glass of wine.
      • The public are reminded that on no account should any details of their credit card be supplied to callers, no matter how plausible they may be.
      • They may believe they can now handle alcohol, but it needs to be made clear to patients and carers that on no account should drinking (however little) be resumed.
      • But on no account should you withdraw your money because you won't be allowed to open another Mini Cash ISA until the next tax year.
      • The CPS, in turn, says it would act only after receiving a file from the police, and that on no account would there be a political decision to prosecute.
      • The unit closed and barred its doors and we were told on no account to leave our stations for the duration of the emergency.
      • You need special material and on no account simply use darkened glass, old spectacles or glasses.
      • I had been told that on no account should I annoy him, simply note down his behaviour and report it on a detailed and complex form, which was then circulated to numerous agencies.
      • When the aforementioned boss sends you an e-mail entitled ‘Promotion notice’, on no account should you infer that it involves you.
      • Don't set up camp, German-style, on a sun lounger - and on no account assume it is okay to borrow someone else's suncream.
      • And on no account, Paul says, should any of his pupils settle for performing in bars. ‘Bands that are willing to play the Tuesday night circuit are going to play the Tuesday night circuit for ever.’
      • Even if you do nothing else in Madrid, on no account should you miss the Prado.
      • Effectively they had drawn a line in the sand and told us that the overdraft facilities they had given us were on no account to be exceeded.
      • The residents of the area have made it quite clear that on no account will this be tolerated in this built up area.
      • So while I wasn't actually denied a certificate, I was warned that on no account must I dive deeper than 10m.
      Synonyms
      never, certainly not, absolutely not, definitely not, not in any event, by no means

  • on one's own account

    • With one's own money or assets, rather than for an employer or client.

      he began trading on his own account

  • settle (or square) accounts with

    • 1Pay money owed to (someone).

      Example sentencesExamples
      • Out of time, then, for when I deposited a large insurance company cheque after a burglary and, just when I had started to settle accounts with it, they decided to withdraw it without warning, leaving me in the red.
      • Over the past month and a half, the city settled accounts with 13 property owners on the list, collecting more than $280,000 in the process.
      • PwC were plainly correct in the line they took for, when Jarvis finally settled accounts with Railtrack, Jarvis had to write off this £12 million and a further £6.8 beside.
      • After a long time the master of those servants returned, and settled accounts with them.
      • Then I shall go procure lodging for myself here in town, after which I shall stop by to settle accounts with Mrs. MacBelch.
      1. 1.1Have revenge on.
        the potential danger of using the bill for settling accounts with political opponents
        Example sentencesExamples
        • There, too, the working class was blocked from settling accounts with fascism and capitalism.
        • The work is about the artist's efforts to settle accounts with Bertha Alyce by ‘exposing’ her.
        • There's a war on, you know and the business to hand is to stop it - not settle accounts with groups you don't agree with.
        • But nothing seems to preoccupy them quite as much as the urge to settle accounts with the old government.
        • Henry chose the question of ‘criminous clerks' as the issue on which to settle accounts with his archbishop.
        • If a European referendum is held, it will be time to settle accounts with the EU kleptocracy.
        • On this basis, Shachtman rejected the possibility of the Soviet working class settling accounts with Stalinism through a political revolution.
        • The Emperor returned once again to Italy, to settle accounts with the Lombard League.
        • The idea, however, was rejected because of the potential danger of using the asset forfeiture bill for settling accounts with political opponents.
        • Stalin believed Hitler would never attack the Soviet Union unless or until he had settled accounts with the British empire - because to do so would expose Germany to a war against too many enemies at once.
        • This was only part of a much larger effort by the American ruling class, after decades of political instability, to settle accounts with radicalism and socialism.
        • The DSS has accused the government of using the state of emergency to settle accounts with its political opponents.
        • When Hitler's armies invaded Belgium on May 10, 1940, both Flemish and Wallonian fascist parties celebrated the opportunity given them to win political power, and to settle accounts with Bolshevism.
        • These polemics, though, take on again and again an elegiac ring, as he settles accounts with the great figures who had preoccupied him throughout his life.
        • What we may assume is that an embittered Charlotte is determined to settle accounts with Elizabeth.
        • Gritting their teeth, because the holy men were accustomed to other methods of settling accounts with heretics and nonbelievers.
        • The last years of Franco's life were marked by the political strivings of the working class to settle accounts with the dictatorship and student rebellions.
        • Pseudoscientists are anxious to settle accounts with the Academy of Science, because the Academy is a great obstacle to these newly half-baked ‘scientists.’
        • Chris risks his life to save Dixie, but later claims he only did it to square accounts with Dixie for his having accepted the blame for starting their fistfight.
        • Rick was just going to have to forget about settling accounts with her because she was having none of it.
        Synonyms
        get one's revenge, have one's revenge, take one's revenge, get one's revenge on, have one's revenge on, take one's revenge on, be revenged, be revenged on, revenge oneself, revenge oneself on, hit back, get back at, get, get even, get even with, even the score, even the score with, settle a score, settle the score, settle accounts, settle accounts with, give as good as one gets, play tit for tat, repay, pay someone back, give someone their just deserts, reciprocate, retaliate, retaliate against, retaliate on, take reprisals, take reprisals against, exact retribution, exact retribution on, let someone see how it feels, give someone a taste of their own medicine

  • take something into account (or take account of)

    • Consider a specified thing along with other factors before reaching a decision or taking action.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • It is for the tribunal as an industrial jury to take all relevant factors into account in reaching its conclusion, giving such weight to them as it considers appropriate.
      • These factors will be taken into account when the application for the Stockwell Square development is considered by the Planning Board.
      • The decisions made under this Article are declaratory, but national courts and NCAs would be bound to take them into account when reaching their own decisions.
      • Obviously, any major troop movement must be based on a government decision that takes all relevant factors into account.
      • Finance, manpower and property considerations were taken into account by decision makers who say the move reflects the Army's strategy of reallocating resources.
      • Owners need to take this factor into account when planning combined outdoor activities, whether a race or a Frisbee-catching activity at the local park.
      • He said he hoped his views would be taken into account when a decision was made on what disciplinary action would be taken against the officer.
      • The council, by apparently not taking these factors into account, is rushing through plans which they could come to regret and that may well have serious consequences for our children.
      • It is vital that risks to men, women, and children are all taken into account as being seriously important.
      • Now, considering women tend to live about four years longer than men and that men tend to have more car crashes than women, it seems ridiculous that insurers are not going to be allowed to take these factors into account when assessing risk.
      • Even after taking these factors into account, the researchers found lower cognitive development for the children of mothers who worked full-time during their child's first nine months.
      • It should be noted, however, that several important factors are not taken into account in the calculation.
      • The council would then take all representations into account before reaching a final decision.
      • An officer characterized by such a style of leadership refrains from one-man decision-making, trusts his collective and takes its opinion into account in making decisions.
      • The simple truth is that a number of factors are taken into account, including circulation figures.
      • If the defendant wrongly takes that financial interest into account, rather than reaching the decision on legitimate planning grounds, then the decision can be challenged on ordinary judicial review grounds.
      • These risks tend to disappear altogether when factors other than weight are taken into account.
      • And the risks to the woman need to be properly assessed and clearly explained to her, so that she can take them into account in making her decision.
      • A spokesman for the council said the scheme would be considered on its planning merits and the committee would take all viewpoints into account when reaching its decision.
      • Furthermore, from time to time, they take these economic implications into account, along with other factors, in arriving at their decisions.
      Synonyms
      consider, take account of, take into consideration, make allowances for, respect, bear in mind, be mindful of, have regard to, reckon with, remember, mind, mark, heed, note, not forget, make provision for, take to heart, pay regard to, be guided by
      consider, take into account, take into consideration, make allowances for, respect, bear in mind, be mindful of, have regard to, reckon with, remember, mind, mark, heed, note, not forget, make provision for, take to heart, pay regard to, be guided by

  • there's no accounting for tastes (or taste)

    • proverb It is impossible to explain why different people like different things, especially those things that the speaker considers unappealing.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • You may be wondering why she was ever with me in the first place, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • You might disagree with my view, but then there's no accounting for taste.
      • As for why people have jerks in their lives, Prudie cannot help but think of the old joke: When told her son was wanted by the police, the woman said, ‘Well, there's no accounting for taste.’
      • As for why he'd buy you - David's a nice guy and deserves better, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • But, I suppose there's no accounting for taste.
      • I like reading a Hooton poem but there's no accounting for tastes.
      • They DO like Papa Roach though, so there's no accounting for taste…
      • Not bad for a half hour or so of work; you might have thought that the enormous bounce in album sales worldwide would have been enough, but then there's no accounting for taste.
      • The right mood music can do a lot for an evening of love, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • And the only computer I had access to would immediately shut down every time I tried to log into this page (there's no accounting for tastes.)
      • But, as they point out there's no accounting for taste.
      • I've never had such interest shown in my PDA, which I think is much more entertaining, not to mention more likely to contain explosives, but there's no accounting for taste.
      • Taste might seem completely subjective - we all know the saying there's no accounting for taste.
      • I actually enjoyed Reign Of Fire, so there's no accounting for taste.
      • Still, there's no accounting for taste - and she did, allegedly, have that tattoo on her ankle.
      • I thought it was tacky with garbage music, but hey, there's no accounting for taste.
      • Well, it just proves once again that there's no accounting for taste.
      • But even then, there's no accounting for taste, so I can't even categorically rule out the last bunch.
      • On the other hand my wife bought a Glock and married me, so there's no accounting for taste!
      • I guess there's no accounting for taste.

  • turn something to (good) account

    • Turn something to one's advantage.

      Example sentencesExamples
      • We say that the correct criterion is that enunciated by Justice Hill, namely, whether the athlete has turned her skill to account, and in that inquiry the subjective purpose of the athlete is a critical thing.
      • That is not something they can sell, and they cannot turn it to good account.
      • Further a field the Blues will look to Philip Nolan, David Bermingham, Pa and Anthony Kavanagh and Gavin and Brian Walker to gain valuable possession and turn it to account.
      • Of course, research in itself is no panacea, but more successful players like General Mills, Quaker Oats, Nabisco and, of course, Kraft, have turned it to good account.
      • She has not been engaged in a business activity to exploit her sporting prowess or to turn her talent to account in money.
      • Tangible assets, considered simply as material objects, are inert, transient and trivial, compared with the abiding efficiency of that living structure of technology that has created them and continues to turn them to account.
      Synonyms
      act on, take advantage of, capitalize on, use, exploit, make the most of, leap at, jump on, pounce on, seize, seize on, grasp, grab, snatch, accept, put to advantage, profit from, turn to account, cash in on

Phrasal Verbs

  • account for

    • 1Give a satisfactory record of (something, typically money, that one is responsible for).

      Example sentencesExamples
      • I'm going to be more disciplined about my spending habits, and instead of wasting money, I'll account for everything that I spend.
      • The money collected was not accounted for but collection was done on a daily basis.
      • National has no problem in theory with devolving the management of community programmes and assets to the community itself as long as government money is accounted for.
      • However, the ESB must account for all the money it spends.
      • The court also indicated that the defendants' fiduciary duty included a responsibility to account for property and money entrusted to them.
      • You can have this debt relief, but you have to observe human rights and be honest about accounting for the money, and you've got to put it into education, health care or economic development.
      • Fiscal accountability, being very open with students on how we spend our money, accounting for every penny.
      • I have heard that as much as $8 billion of that money cannot be accounted for by the coalition.
      • He was unable to account for the money they gave him in the 1990s.
      • What differentiates it from these examples and where the most stinging criticism lies concerns accounting for public money.
      • There are a lot of Government departments that collect revenue from the public and it is important that all the money is accounted for.
      • The GO budget, as it is commonly referred to, accounts for money spent by central administration and its related services.
      • Assuring students that all the money would be accounted for, he said he planned to meet with the bursary yesterday to get an idea of the balance in the guild's account.
      • You and I don't really want to know how much money they've actually accounted for, do we?
      • Education minister Alan Johnson recognised the ‘differences of opinion’ between Mancat and the LSC but stressed the need for money to be accounted for.
      • The records were well maintained and all the money was accounted for,’ he said.
      • It did not indicate that he had not accounted for any sums of money.
      • They claim that all the money is accounted for because company employees always assist the dead person's relatives.
      • There is nothing more satisfying than knowing your entire record can be accounted for by your own hands.
      • There were few or no controls over how that money was spent and accounted for.
      1. 1.1Provide or serve as a satisfactory explanation or reason for.
        he was brought before the Board to account for his behavior
        Example sentencesExamples
        • But it was not just the fine weather that accounted for the record attendances.
        • At least three, potentially related, explanations may account for this finding.
        • This is an absence from the historical record that must be accounted for.
        • Even if correct, however, this explanation would not account for the health problems of their younger daughter, who has not yet attended high school.
        • Several explanations account for this lack of activism.
        • Yesterday I wrote that I thought this explanation probably accounted for most of the change in sentiment among the Spanish electorate.
        • Thus a scenario or process explanation which reasonably accounts for what we know at a particular point in time is not a bad thing, so long as we understand its hybrid nature.
        • Lastly, there is no one explanation that accounts for Rome's decline and fall.
        • But neither can conventional political explanations account for this policy choice.
        • It is not clear how much variance each of these two explanatory factors provides to account for psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents.
        • This, rather than anything to do with the specific phases of the development of IT, accounts for the recent disappointing record of productivity.
        • However, even this neat explanation fails to account for the appalling standard of this week's releases where the mediocre (at best) rub shoulders with several of the worst films ever made.
        • Of course, classically trained economists have bandied about all manner of explanations to account for the anomaly, none of which include management nor manipulation.
        • Simplistic though it may seem, an elementary explanation may help to account for the gradual shift away from Augustinianism.
        • Pierre starts life with the belief that there must be some grand system of explanation that will account for life and justify it, and provide the sure interpretation of it.
        • Still, this sort of power-based explanation cannot account for American activism in the 1890s or 1790s.
        • At the end of the day, we are faced with the ‘mystery of evil’, a demonic hatred that runs deeper than merely human explanations can account for.
        • Scientists immediately scrambled to find an explanation that could account for a persistent, recurring cycle of planet-wide species die-outs.
        • The explanation cannot even account for the flood legends.
        • There is no one explanation that accounts for every feature of the grail legend.
        Synonyms
        explain, give an explanation, come up with an explanation, explain away, answer for, give reasons for, rationalize, provide a rationale for, show grounds for, elucidate, illuminate, clear up
      2. 1.2Know the fate or whereabouts of (someone or something), especially after an accident.
        everyone was accounted for after the floods
        Example sentencesExamples
        • Despite this, Anwar and his lawyers were able to account for his whereabouts on every single day of this three-month period.
        • Their families will be aware that they cannot account for their whereabouts at that time. I'd urge them to come forward.
        • No charges were laid against them, as they could all account for their whereabouts the night Seecharan was set ablaze.
        • All major components of the airplane were accounted for at the accident scene.
        • It is claimed that a number of FRU officers cannot account for their whereabouts on March 17.
        • For your information, I can indeed account for my whereabouts when Daniel smashed his neck in.
        • As part of his defence, Anwar's lawyers accounted for his whereabouts at the time in question - 7.45 p.m. - for every day over that period.
        • Authorities have never publicly accounted for his whereabouts during the time of the alleged motel encounter.
        • Nerac's wife, Fabienne, has asked US Secretary of State Colin Powell to account for her husband's whereabouts during a news conference in Brussels, Belgium.
        • Why cannot the council account for the whereabouts of the above items or the disappearance of upwards of 20 high quality suits?
        • Being unable to account for the whereabouts of even one-fifth that many weapons would be alarming, according to former ATF agents, even for a store the size of Bull's Eye.
        • It will release or account for all Gulf War personnel whose fate is still unknown.
        • Of course, the prosecution could have pointed out that still wouldn't account for the man's whereabouts in the first three or the last two innings.
        • And think of the faith-healing couple that refuses to account for the whereabouts of their infant.
        • This is a massive stockpile of biological weapons that has never been accounted for and is capable of killing millions.
        • Kerry's whereabouts must be known and accounted for most, if not all, of that time.
      3. 1.3Succeed in killing, destroying, or defeating.
        the fifth inning accounted for Lyons, who gave up three back-to-back home runs
        Example sentencesExamples
        • In the quarterfinals Carlow C.B.S. defeated Col. Iosagain, Portarlington while St. Kieran's accounted for Ballyfin.
        • On the other side Naas pulled out all the stops in defeating Kilkenny and they went on to easily account for Portlaoise in the final.
        • In Major League, undefeated Workers held off a spirited Norths charge to retain the top position, whereas Brothers easily accounted for last-placed Redbirds in a seven innings encounter.
        • The winners dominated the second period and a lack of power up front was a major factor in this defeat for the West who accounted for the East Division in the opening round the previous week.
        • After comfortably accounting for Haydock away and Newton-le Willows at home they destroyed the hopes of Highfield who themselves had aspirations to become league leaders.
        • After a relatively slow start the Lismore team came home with a barnstorming finish to easily account for the highly fancied Coffs Harbour and Armidale teams.
        • They accounted for 14 of the 18 enemy aircraft, destroyed at a cost of eight British lives.
        • At adult level both junior teams were successful with the junior squad defeating Eire Og and the Junior squad accounting for Kilbride.
        • Earlier in the week the Eire Og men defeated Michael Davitts in the semi final while Rathvilly accounted for Tinryland in the second semi final.
        • Laois accounted for Kildare and Carlow while Carlow defeated Kildare.
        • Rooney charged around for the remainder of the match, furious with his - and his team's - inability to defeat the kind of opposition that has to be accounted for if the Premiership title is to be won.
        Synonyms
        dispose of, finish off, make an end of, deal with, put paid to, take care of, clear up, mop up, eliminate, kill, destroy, dispatch, put out of action, incapacitate

    • 2Supply or make up (a specified amount or proportion)

      social security accounts for about a third of total public spending
      Example sentencesExamples
      • Money laundering, which accounts for £18 bn a year in the UK, is another key issue facing the financial watchdog, and enforcing new regulations will be a key test for him.
      • The money accounted for three-quarters of the profits made by Kilmarnock Prison Services Ltd over the past two years.
      • In 2003, there were 83,000 babies born in Shanghai, of which the migrant population was responsible for 26,000, accounting for about one third of the total.
      • High utilizers of medical services comprise a small proportion of all patients, yet they account for a disproportionate amount of expenses in the health care system.
      • Whereas manufacturing once accounted for almost 40% of the UK's output, it now represents less than half that.
      • Motorways are statistically the safest roads, carrying 15 per cent of traffic and accounting for three per cent of accidents.
      • Shocking statistics show one-third of workplace accidents occur in the agriculture sector which accounts for just 7.5% of the workforce.
      • Children account for a large proportion of casualties because they represent 39 per cent of the overall population in the eight hardest-hit countries.
      • Statistics show that heavy vehicles account for a large number of accidents.
      • Labourers who plunge to the ground in building site accidents accounted for more than half of all construction deaths, and nearly a third of major injuries across Britain, in 2001-02.
      • Ten trades in Abbey shares were recorded, accounting for almost €100,000.
      • The money from News Corporation accounts for almost half of the NZRU's revenue.
      • But such accidents account for only one-third of all oil pollution.
      • More than half of Scotland's councils do not offer school swimming lessons to primary children, and yet recent figures have shown drowning accidents are accounting for nearly 100 young people's deaths annually.
      • Motorbikes represent just 1% of all vehicles on Scottish roads, but they account for more than 14% of road accidents.
      • Motorists who get behind the wheel when tired account for 20 per cent of Britain's road accidents.
      • And by Wednesday Jackson broke records on Yahoo, accounting for nearly 20% of all terms searched on the site.
      • This represents approximately one patient per day and accounts for only a small proportion of attendances with chest pain to an urban emergency department.
      • Irish consumers also have a unique taste for high dry matter potatoes, with the varieties Kerr's Pink, Record and Rooster accounting for over 60% of total production.
      • In 1969, he accounted for 5% of record sales in the U.S.A., outselling the Beatles.
      Synonyms
      constitute, make up, comprise, form, compose, be responsible for, represent, supply, provide, give

Origin

Middle English (in the sense ‘counting’, ‘to count’): from Old French acont (noun), aconter (verb), based on conter ‘to count’.

noun.1
phr.
phr.v.
 
 
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更新时间：2024/12/22 23:09:05