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View synonyms for cause

cause

1

[ kawz ]

noun

  1. a person or thing that acts, happens, or exists in such a way that some specific thing happens as a result; the producer of an effect:

    You have been the cause of much anxiety.

    What was the cause of the accident?

  2. the reason or motive for some human action:

    The good news was a cause for rejoicing.

  3. good or sufficient reason:

    to complain without cause;

    to be dismissed for cause.

  4. Law.
    1. a ground of legal action; the matter over which a person goes to law.
    2. a case for judicial decision.
  5. any subject of discussion or debate.
  6. a principle, ideal, goal, or movement to which a person or group is dedicated:

    the Socialist cause;

    the human rights cause.

  7. the welfare of a person or group, seen as a subject of concern:

    support for the cause of the American Indian.

  8. Philosophy.
    1. the end or purpose for which a thing is done or produced.
    2. Aristotelianism. any of the four things necessary for the movement or the coming into being of a thing, namely a material material cause, something to act upon it efficient cause, a form taken by the movement or development formal cause, and a goal or purpose final cause.


verb (used with object)

, caused, caus·ing.
  1. to be the cause of; bring about.

    Synonyms: produce, create, make, effect

'cause

2

[ kawz, kuhz, unstressed kuhz ]

conjunction

, Informal.
  1. a shortened form of because.

cause

/ kɔːz /

noun

  1. a person, thing, event, state, or action that produces an effect
  2. grounds for action; motive; justification

    she had good cause to shout like that

  3. the ideals, etc, of a group or movement

    the Communist cause

  4. the welfare or interests of a person or group in a dispute

    they fought for the miners' cause

  5. a matter of widespread concern or importance

    the cause of public health

    1. a ground for legal action; matter giving rise to a lawsuit
    2. the lawsuit itself
  6. (in the philosophy of Aristotle) any of four requirements for a thing's coming to be, namely material (material cause), its nature (formal cause), an agent (efficient cause), and a purpose (final cause)
  7. make common cause with
    to join with (a person, group, etc) for a common objective
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. tr to be the cause of; bring about; precipitate; be the reason for
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • ˈcauseless, adjective
  • ˈcauser, noun
  • ˌcausaˈbility, noun
  • ˈcausable, adjective
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Other Words From

  • causa·ble adjective
  • causa·bili·ty noun
  • causeless adjective
  • causeless·ly adverb
  • causeless·ness noun
  • causer noun
  • non·causa·ble adjective
  • self-caused adjective
  • subcause noun
  • un·causa·ble adjective
  • under·cause noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of cause1

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Latin causa “case, reason, sake”

Origin of cause2

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English; aphetic variant
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Word History and Origins

Origin of cause1

C13: from Latin causa cause, reason, motive
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. make common cause, to unite in a joint effort; work together for the same end:

    They made common cause with neighboring countries and succeeded in reducing tariffs.

More idioms and phrases containing cause

  • lost cause
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Synonym Study

Cause, occasion refer to the starting of effects into motion. A cause is an agency, perhaps acting through a long time, or a long-standing situation, that produces an effect: The cause of the quarrel between the two men was jealousy. An occasion is an event that provides an opportunity for the effect to become evident, or perhaps promotes its becoming evident: The occasion was the fact that one man's wages were increased. See reason.
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Example Sentences

Instead, they are mostly standing still and wondering why the American people en masse are not rallying to their cause.

From Salon

She thinks the fire could have been caused by an electrical fault in her kitchen as that's where her neighbour saw the flames.

From BBC

Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson acknowledged in a statement Saturday the deep pain and grief the shooting had caused the community.

“Officers on scene got different statements from different people, so they’ll be following up to determine what caused him to lose control,” Araiza said of the motorcycle officer.

"Lots of things going on, which cause me daily pain and difficulties with mobility."

From BBC

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More About Cause

What is a basic definition of cause?

A cause is a person, thing, event, or action that triggers a resulting event. Cause can also mean a motivation or an ideal or goal that a person or group is dedicated to. Cause has several other senses as a noun and one as a verb.

In manner of speaking, the cause tells you why something happened. A cause is the spark that lights a fire. The cause of you being sick might be a bacteria or a virus that harms your body. You giving your niece a birthday present might be the cause of her being happy. The word cause is often used with the word effect, which means a resulting action that happens because of a cause.

  • Real-life examples: Faulty wiring may be the cause of an electrical fire. John Wilkes Booth was the cause of Abraham Lincoln’s death (because Booth shot Lincoln). A giant iceberg was the cause of the sinking of the Titanic.
  • Used in a sentence: Experts are still trying to figure out the cause of the mysterious plane crash. 

In this sense, cause is used as a verb to mean to bring about something.

  • Used in a sentence: My late-night partying caused me to fail my exam.

Cause is also used as a synonym for motive or reason, meaning a person’s motivation for doing something. In this sense, cause is often used in law (usually as “just cause” or “sufficient cause”) to determine if someone had a valid reason for doing something.

  • Used in a sentence: The lawyer argued that the company had fired his client without good cause.

A cause is something that a person or group believes in or an ideal or goal that they have dedicated themselves to.

  • Real-life examples: Antiracism is a cause that wants to end racism. Environmentalism is a cause that wants to protect the environment from damage. If a friend of yours is very sick and you start a collection to help with medical bills, that too is a cause.
  • Used in a sentence: I donated $50 to the cancer charity because they have a good cause.

Where does cause come from?

The first records of cause come from around 1175. It comes from the Latin causa,  meaning “reason” or “sake.”

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to cause?

  • causable (adjective)
  • causability (noun)
  • causeless (adjective)
  • causelessly (adverb)
  • self-caused (adjective)

What are some synonyms for cause?

What are some words that share a root or word element with cause

What are some words that often get used in discussing cause?

How is cause used in real life?

Cause is a very common word that means a reason something happened.

Try using cause!

True or False?

My cat pushed the lamp off the table. My cat is the cause of my broken lamp.

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.

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