count for (something)
To have value. This phrase is often used in the negative to convey the opposite. If I fail the test after weeks of studying, all of that effort will count for nothing. I at least sent her a text. That's got to count for something! He did apologize, though, and that should count for something.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
count for something
to be valid for something; to be worth something. Doesn't all my work count for anything? Your positive attitude counts for a lot as far as I'm concerned.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
count for
1. Have importance or worth, as in Doesn't his long tenure count for anything? or Does this tournament count for computer points? This usage employs count in the sense of "enter into a reckoning." [Mid-1800s]
2. count for nothing. Have no influence or effect, as in All his work counts for nothing since they've dropped the project. This idiom was first recorded in 1861.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.