due
Americanadjective
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owed at present; having reached the date for payment.
This bill is due.
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owing or owed, irrespective of whether the time of payment has arrived.
This bill is due next month.
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owing or observed as a moral or natural right.
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rightful; proper; fitting.
due care; in due time.
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adequate; sufficient.
a due margin for delay.
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under engagement as to time; expected to be ready, be present, or arrive; scheduled.
The plane is due at noon.
noun
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something that is due, owed, or naturally belongs to someone.
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Usually dues a regular fee or charge payable at specific intervals, especially to a group or organization.
membership dues.
adverb
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directly or exactly.
a due east course.
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Obsolete. duly.
idioms
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give someone his / her due,
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to give what justice demands; treat fairly.
Even though he had once cheated me, I tried to give him his due.
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to credit a disliked or dishonorable person for something that is likable, honorable, or the like.
-
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due to,
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attributable to; ascribable to.
The delay was due to heavy traffic.
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because of; owing to.
All planes are grounded due to fog.
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pay one's dues, to earn respect, a position, or a right by hard work, sacrifice, or experience.
She's a famous musician now, but she paid her dues with years of practice and performing in small towns.
adjective
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(postpositive) immediately payable
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(postpositive) owed as a debt, irrespective of any date for payment
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requisite; fitting; proper
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(prenominal) adequate or sufficient; enough
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(postpositive) expected or appointed to be present or arrive
the train is now due
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attributable to or caused by
noun
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something that is owed, required, or due
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to give or allow a person what is deserved or right
adverb
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012Pronunciation
See new.
Usage
Due to as a prepositional phrase meaning “because of, owing to” has been in use since the 14th century: Due to the sudden rainstorm, the picnic was moved indoors. Some object to this use on the grounds that due is historically an adjective and thus should be used only predicatively in constructions like The delay was due to electrical failure. Despite such objections, due to occurs commonly as a compound preposition and is standard in all varieties of speech and writing.
The use of due to as a compound preposition (the performance has been cancelled due to bad weather) was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable
Other Word Forms
- dueness noun
Etymology
Origin of due
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Anglo-French; Middle French deu, past participle of devoir, from Latin dēbēre “to owe”; debt
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The chief constable admitted that had ended up in the report "due to a social media post".
From BBC
In an email to members, UK boss James Taylor said the firm had launched a formal consultation with employees and bookings due to finish by the end of the month were being honoured.
From BBC
Vistra stock has lost momentum over the past three months, falling 5.4%, partly due to a miss on earnings expectations in its most recent report.
From Barron's
The first attempt to access the report at the address where it was to eventually be posted occurred at 05:16 U.K. time, more than seven hours before Reeves was due to begin speaking.
Simply put, whether due to misjudging the country’s mood or the increasingly obvious effects of poor health and aging, the president has been off his game.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.