cause

[ kawz ]

/ kɔz /

|||

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cause ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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?

the reason or motive for some human action: The good news was a cause for rejoicing.

good or sufficient reason: to complain without cause; to be dismissed for cause.

Law.

a ground of legal action; the matter over which a person goes to law.
a case for judicial decision.

any subject of discussion or debate.

a principle, ideal, goal, or movement to which a person or group is dedicated: the Socialist cause; the human rights cause.

the welfare of a person or group, seen as a subject of concern: support for the cause of the American Indian.

Philosophy.

the end or purpose for which a thing is done or produced.
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.

to be the cause of; bring about.

Nearby words

causally, causation, causationism, causative, causatively, cause, cause a commotion, cause célèbre, cause list, cause raised eyebrows, cause-and-effect

Idioms

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.

Origin of cause

1175–1225; Middle English < Latin causa reason, sake, case

SYNONYMS FOR cause

9 effect, make, create, produce.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cause ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

caus·a·ble, adjectivecaus·a·bil·i·ty, nouncause·less, adjectivecause·less·ly, adverb

cause·less·ness, nouncaus·er, nounnon·caus·a·ble, adjectiveself-caused, adjectivesub·cause, nounun·caus·a·ble, adjectiveun·der·cause, noun

Can be confusedcausality causation cause

Synonym study

1. 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. 3. See reason.

Definition for cause (2 of 2)

'cause

[ kawz, kuhz, unstressed kuh z ]

/ kɔz, kʌz, unstressed kəz /

conjunction Informal.

because.

Origin of 'cause

1400–50; late Middle English; aphetic variant

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cause

So we know that boring down to the bedrock and pumping it full of fluid can cause earthquakes.
26 Earthquakes Later, Fracking’s Smoking Gun Is in Texas|James Joiner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
If Dudesmash were to be something we continued doing, this would be an important year to do it, ‘cause we didn’t do one last year.
Deer Tick's John McCauley on Ten Years in Rock and Roll|James Joiner|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“We hope that the aircraft is found quickly, and we can find out the cause of what has happened,” he said.
The Presumed Crash of AirAsia Flight QZ8501 Is Nothing Like MH370|Lennox Samuels|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Unfortunately, that means suppressing fire or cutting down all the pretty uninfected trees can cause mistletoe outbreaks.
Mistletoe is the Vampire of Plants|Helen Thompson|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“Sometimes elevating the heart rate will cause additional pounding in your head,” says Crandall.
5 Hangover Cures to Save You After a Few Too Many|DailyBurn|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The advent of technological application in the farming sector was a cause of both optimism and disquiet.
Frying Pan Farm|Elizabeth Brown Pryor
What defect in the feed valve will cause the brake pipe pressure to equalize with that in the main reservoir?
The Traveling Engineers' Association|Anonymous
Mrs. Page could not get back of Harriet's revolt to its cause.
K|Mary Roberts Rinehart
Yes, the sun shines on us, and may it shine on our country's cause.
The Cruise of the "Lively Bee"|John De Morgan
Lily tossed the missile into the other girl's lap, for she was too eager to open her own two letters to cause any further delay.
The Girl Scouts' Good Turn|Edith Lavell

British Dictionary definitions for cause

cause

/ (kɔːz) /

noun

a person, thing, event, state, or action that produces an effect

grounds for action; motive; justificationshe had good cause to shout like that

the ideals, etc, of a group or movementthe Communist cause

the welfare or interests of a person or group in a disputethey fought for the miners' cause

a matter of widespread concern or importancethe cause of public health

a ground for legal action; matter giving rise to a lawsuit
the lawsuit itself

(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)

make common cause with to join with (a person, group, etc) for a common objective

verb

(tr) to be the cause of; bring about; precipitate; be the reason for

Derived Formscausable, adjectivecausability, nouncauseless, adjectivecauser, noun

Word Origin for cause

C13: from Latin causa cause, reason, motive

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

Word Origin and History for cause (1 of 2)

cause

c.1200, "reason for action, grounds for action; motive," from Old French cause "cause, reason; lawsuit, case in law" (12c.), and directly from Latin causa "a cause; a reason; interest; judicial process, lawsuit," of unknown origin.

In English, sense of "matter of concern; side taken in controversy" is from c.1300; that of "the source of an effect" is early 14c.; meaning "reason for something taking place" is late 14c. Cause célèbre "celebrated legal case" is 1763, from French. Cause why? "for what reason?" is in Chaucer.

Word Origin and History for cause (1 of 2)

cause

late 14c., "produce an effect," also "impel, compel," from Old French causer "to cause" (13c.) and directly from Medieval Latin causare, from Latin causa "a cause; a reason; interest; judicial process, lawsuit," of unknown origin. Related: Caused; causing. Classical Latin causari meant "to plead, to debate a question."

Idioms and Phrases with cause

cause

In addition to the idioms beginning with cause

cause a commotion
cause raised eyebrows

also see:

lost cause

cause

noun

verb (used with object), caused, caus·ing.

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of cause

Synonym study

Definition for cause (2 of 2)

'cause

conjunction Informal.

Origin of 'cause

Examples from the Web for cause

British Dictionary definitions for cause

cause

noun

verb

Word Origin for cause

Word Origin and History for cause (1 of 2)

cause

Word Origin and History for cause (1 of 2)

cause

Idioms and Phrases with cause

cause