account

noun ac·count \ ə-ˈkau̇nt \

Updated on: 16 Apr 2018

Definition of account

1 a : a record of debit (see ²debit 1a) and credit (see ¹credit 2d) entries to cover transactions involving a particular item or a particular person or concern

b : a statement of transactions during a fiscal period and the resulting balance

c archaic : reckoning, computation

2 a : a statement explaining one's conduct

She was asked to give an account of her actions.

b : a statement or exposition of reasons, causes, or motives

no satisfactory account of these phenomena

c : a reason for an action : basis

On that account I must refuse.

3 a (1) : a formal business arrangement providing for regular dealings or services (such as banking, advertising, or store credit) and involving the establishment and maintenance of an account

a checking account

; also : client, customer

They are one of our most important accounts.

(2) : money deposited in a bank account and subject to withdrawal by the depositor

b : an arrangement in which a person uses the Internet or e-mail services of a particular company

4 a : value, importance

It's of no account to me.

b : esteem

stood high in their account

5 : advantage

turned her wit to good account

6 a : careful thought : consideration

have to take many things into account

b : a usually mental record : track

Keep account of all you do.

7 : a description of facts, conditions, or events : report, narrative

the newspaper account of the fire

By all accounts they're well-off.

; also : performance

a straightforward account of the sonata

— give a good account of oneself

: to perform well especially in a competition or confrontation : to acquit oneself well

Though he has an aristocratic bearing, he could probably give a good account of himself in a street fight.
—Ishmael Reed

— on account

: with the price charged to one's account

purchasing on acccount

— on account of

: for the sake of : because of

The game was cancelled on account of rain.

— on no account

: under no circumstances

On no account should the children be left alone at home.

— on one's own account

1 : on one's own behalf

I'm doing it on my own account, not for anyone else.

2 : at one's own risk

3 : by oneself : on one's own

See account defined for English-language learners

See account defined for kids

Examples of account in a Sentence

the difference between the debit and credit sides of an account
We always keep very good accounts.
We opened new accounts at a bank last week.
I took out my money and closed my account.
You can withdraw up to $1,000 a day from your account.
Every week, she puts a part of her paycheck into a separate account.
setting up a bank account

Recent Examples of account from the Web

In January, Instagram account Diet Prada called the designer out for ripping off Martin Margiela’s Tabi boots.

— Teen Vogue, "Balenciaga Is Selling $895 Airbrushed “New York City” Sweatshirts," 12 Apr. 2018
With the April 17 tax deadline just a couple of days away, many of us are finding a check in the mail (or a direct deposit in our bank account) from the IRS.

— tom cooney and crystal faulkner, Cincinnati.com, "Here are the best ways to use your tax refund," 12 Apr. 2018
That’s especially surprising for Chiang, who has held statewide office for the past 11 years and had better than $9 million in his campaign accounts on Dec. 31.

— john wildermuth, San Francisco Chronicle, "Gavin Newsom keeps lead over John Cox in new governor’s poll," 11 Apr. 2018
New tech companies haven’t inspired much confidence by neglecting to take existing transportation issues into account.

— patrick sisson, Curbed, "As new transit startups take over streets and sidewalks, cities need to step up," 11 Apr. 2018
In the email, the representative said funds had been deposited in Cohen's account.

— the washington post, AL.com, "Mark Zuckerberg testimony: Facebook founder grilled by Congress," 10 Apr. 2018
In the email, the representative said funds had been deposited in Cohen’s account.

— Time, "President Trump Believes He Has the Power to Fire Robert Mueller, White House Says," 10 Apr. 2018
The President's anger over the raid as well as a new assessment of what the implications of the raid could be for Cohen's most prominent client, Trump, are factors that the President's legal team has to take into account.

— pamela brown, CNN, "Special counsel team met with Trump lawyers on day of Cohen raid," 10 Apr. 2018
In my experience, mania is like having an elastic view of reality, where regular limitations seem negotiable, including the balance in my bank account.

— erin stewart, SELF, "My Bipolar Disorder Makes Me Want to Spend Money I Don’t Have," 9 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'account.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of account

Middle English acounte, accompt, borrowed from Anglo-French acunte, acounte, noun derivative of acunter "to ²account"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

account Synonyms

Other Business Terms

amortize, caveat emptor, clearinghouse, divest, due diligence, emolument, green-collar, marque, overhead, perquisite

account

verb

Definition of account

intransitive verb

1 : to furnish a justifying analysis or explanation —used with for

couldn't account for the loss

2 a : to be the sole or primary factor —used with for

The left fielder accounted for all three putouts.

b : to bring about the capture, death, or destruction of something —used with for

Enemy fighters accounted for two of the bombers.

transitive verb

1 : to think of as : consider

accounts himself lucky

2 : to probe into : analyze

See account defined for English-language learners

Examples of account in a Sentence

account themselves lucky to be alive

Recent Examples of account from the Web

The industry now accounts for roughly half of all investment in American manufacturing.

— The Economist, "America’s chemicals industry is booming. But politics may get in its way," 14 Apr. 2018
After all, Matt Rambo, Colin Heacock and Dylan Maltz had accounted for 47 percent of the Terps’ points and 41.8 percent of their goals last spring, and Rambo polished off his senior year with the school’s first Tewaaraton Award.

— edward lee, baltimoresun.com, "After loss of key parts, Maryland men's lacrosse offense still humming under J.L. Reppert," 13 Apr. 2018
This past season, Catalon had over 1,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards and accounted for 28 TDs, while also racking up 101 tackles and three interceptions.

— william wilkerson, star-telegram, "Football or baseball? Elite DFW athlete doesn't have to pick if he goes to Texas | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 11 Apr. 2018
There are over 28,500 dog walkers in United States, and while some folks may turn their snouts at the profession, dog walkers account for $1 billion in revenue annually, according to research group IBISWorld.

— matthew libassi, Fox News, "Tails of a dog walker: Meet Biscuit, the German Shepherd Chow mix who wouldn't budge," 11 Apr. 2018
Read More ‘Some unpleasant truths’ on race, poverty and opportunity revealed in CMS report What's next Those new initiatives don't account for the full increase Wilcox is seeking.

— ann doss helms, charlotteobserver, "CMS budget plan: Bulletproof doors, local teacher raises and $40M hike from the county | Charlotte Observer," 11 Apr. 2018
Agricultural exports now consistently account for about 20% of farm income.

— ronald brownstein, CNN, "Trade war threatens the GOP's firewall in 2018," 10 Apr. 2018
Last year, that accounted for about 16 percent of the zoo's total budget.

— scott wartman, Cincinnati.com, "What is Hamilton County Issue 2? The zoo levy," 10 Apr. 2018
These federal programs would account for anywhere between 30 and 51 percent of housing starts between 1951 and 1957, according to Grebler’s analysis.

— patrick sisson, Curbed, "Why buying a house today is so much harder than in 1950," 10 Apr. 2018

Origin and Etymology of account

Middle English accounten, acounten, accompten "to count, compute, evaluate, give an account of," borrowed from Anglo-French acunter, acompter, from a-, prefix forming transitive verbs (going back to Latin ad- ad-) + cunter, compter "to ¹count"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

account Synonyms

Synonyms

call, consider, count, esteem, hold, look (on or upon), rate, reckon, regard, set down, view;

Related Words

believe, deem, feel, sense, think;

conceive, fancy, imagine;

Phrases

take for;

Financial Definition of ACCOUNT

on account

noun

What It Is

On account is a term that describes situations in which a customer makes a partial payment for goods or services purchased.

How It Works

In the business world, buying things on account is the same as creating accounts payable. For example, let's assume that Company XYZ orders $1 million in widget parts from its supplier.

Company XYZ pays the supplier $100,000 and puts the other $900,000 on account. This basically means it will pay the rest later -- let's say in 60 days.

Why It Matters

Buying things on account is similar to saying, "put it on my tab." Eventually, however, you have to pay the tab. In our example, the transaction requires careful accounting. Once Company XYZ places its order and/or receives the parts, it will increase its inventory account by $1 million, decrease its cash by $100,000, and increase its accounts payable by $900,000. When 60 days has passed and Company XYZ pays the invoice, it will reduce cash by $900,000 and reduce its accounts payable by $900,000.

Technically, any kind of installment loan (such as your mortgage or car loan) is akin to putting something on account. In the business world, putting things on account usually creates accounts payable (or A/P). A/P is a liability, and as such, it appears on the balance sheet.

In turn, when accounts payable go down, this is considered a use of cash on the company's cash flow statement, and as such, it reduces the company's working capital (defined as current assets minus current liabilities). When accounts payable goes up, this is considered a source of cash on the company's cash flow statement because the company is "stretching out" the time it takes to pay its invoices and thus not using cash as quickly.

Source: Investing Answers

ACCOUNT Defined for English Language Learners

account

noun

Definition of account for English Language Learners

: a record of money that has been paid and money that has been received
accounts : records of income and expenses
: an arrangement in which a bank keeps a record of the money that a person puts in and takes out of the bank

account

verb

Definition of account for English Language Learners

: to think of (someone or something) in a specified way

ACCOUNT Defined for Kids

account

noun ac·count \ ə-ˈkau̇nt \

Definition of account for Students

1 : a record of money received and money paid out

2 : an arrangement with a bank to hold money and keep records of transactions

3 : an arrangement for regular dealings with a business

4 : an arrangement in which a person uses the Internet or e-mail services of a particular company

5 : a statement of explanation or of reasons or causes

You'll be asked to give an account of your actions.

6 : a statement of facts or events : report

Give me an account of the game.

7 : ²worth 1, importance

It's of no account to them what I think.

— on account of

: because of

We cancelled on account of the rain.

— on someone's account

: because of someone

Don't stay on my account.

account

verb

Definition of account for Students

accounted; accounting

: to think of as

He accounted himself lucky.

— account for

1 : to take into consideration

She didn't account for extra costs.

2 : to give an explanation

How do you account for your success?

3 : to be the cause of

The flu accounts for many absences.

4 : to make up or form

Women account for half the employees.

Law Dictionary

account

noun ac·count

legal Definition of account

1 a : a record of debit and credit entries to cover transactions involving a particular item (as cash or notes receivable) or a particular person or concern

b : a statement of transactions during a fiscal period showing the resulting balance —sometimes used in the pl.

trustees filed annual accounts as required by statute
—W. M. McGovern, Jr. et al.

2 : a periodically rendered reckoning (as one listing charged purchases and credits)

3 : a sum of money or its equivalent deposited in the common cash of a bank and subject to withdrawal at the option of the depositor

4 : a right under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code to payment for goods or services which is not contained in an instrument or chattel paper and that may or may not have been earned by performance

account

intransitive verb

legal Definition of account

: to give a financial account

a duty to account

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account

Definition of account

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account

Definition of account

Examples of account in a Sentence

Recent Examples of account from the Web

Origin and Etymology of account

account Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Phrases

Financial Definition of ACCOUNT

What It Is

How It Works

Why It Matters

ACCOUNT Defined for English Language Learners

account

Definition of account for English Language Learners

account

Definition of account for English Language Learners

ACCOUNT Defined for Kids

account

Definition of account for Students

account

Definition of account for Students

Law Dictionary

account

legal Definition of account

account

legal Definition of account

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