To account for

Question

“Satisfaction with DVD is very high, and sales figures for the DVD, though the market is contracting, are very strong,” said Chris Fawcett, vice president for the home audio and video division of Sony Electronics, which has lowered growth projections for Blu-ray to account for the downturn in consumer spending.

Could 'to account for' be replaced with 'in light of'?

Thanks.

Avangi · Accepted Answer

Absolutely! In fact, "to account for" is flat-out wrong in this context.

Best regards, - A.

Edit. Well, let me hedge a little on that. It's certainly not the commonly accepted usage of "to account for."

"How do you account for this?" = "How do you explain this?"

"There's no accounting for this!" = "There's no way to explain this!"

I guess it's possible to say that "to account for" in your example means "to adjust for" or "to deal with," although I wouldn't consider it in keeping with common practice.

But in this context, I'd say that your solution hits the nail on the head.

Liveinjapan · Answer

Thanks so much, Avangi!

To account for

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