cause-and-effect
Americanadjective
Usage
What does cause-and-effect mean? Cause-and-effect describes a relationship between actions or events in which at least one action or event is a direct result of the others. Let’s say that you slam your toe into a desk and then yell in pain. Slamming your toe (the first action) hurts, so you yell (the second action). The first action is the cause of the second action, that is, the effect. A cause is a source or producer of effects. An effect is the result or consequence of a cause. The two actions have a cause-and-effect relationship. A cause-and-effect relationship can have multiple causes and one effect, as when you stay up all night and skip breakfast (the causes), you will likely find yourself cranky (the effect). A cause-and-effect relationship can also have one cause but many effects, as when staying up all night (the cause) makes you both cranky and tired (the effects). And, of course, a cause-and-effect relationship can have multiple causes and multiple effects, as when skipping classes and not studying (the causes) result in you not understanding the material and failing the class (the effects).
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.
However, observational data alone cannot prove cause and effect.
From Science Daily • May 6, 2026
The editors of the London Review of Books aren’t conspicuous Trump fans, but they are appreciators of cause and effect.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026
However, the researchers note that the findings show a correlation, not cause and effect, and that factors like motivation or self-discipline may also influence outcomes.
From Science Daily • Mar. 30, 2026
But 34 years later, Sims and Sargent would share in the 2011 economics Nobel for “for their empirical research on cause and effect in the macroeconomy.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
But when it comes to cause and effect, there is often a trap in such open-and-shut thinking.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
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.
