Can I understand 'account for' as 'take up'?

[Liqichao]

hello,
here is the sentence: small carriers and non-passenger operations tend to account for the majority of the accidents.
can I understand ‘account for’ as ‘take up’? how should I use this phrase.

thank you for your answers

[Alan]

Hi,

I would use ‘make up’ as an alternative to ‘account for’ in your sentence.

Alan

[Molly]

are the reason for/are responsible for

[Yankee]

.
The phrase “are the reason for” is not a good alternative for liqichao’s sentence.
.

[Nessie]

The phrase “are the reason for” is not a good alternative for liqichao’s sentence.

Hi Amy,
What about ‘are the cause for’?

here is the sentence: small carriers and non-passenger operations tend to account for the majority of the accidents.
can I understand ‘account for’ as ‘take up’? how should I use this phrase.

I would use ‘make up’ as an alternative to ‘account for’ in your sentence.

Hi Alan,
What about this one: ‘schoolgirls account for 52% of all the students in this university’
=> Can ‘take up’ be used to replace ‘account for’ in this case?

Thank you very much,
Nessie.