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Synonyms

final cause

American  

noun

Aristotelianism.
  1. cause8b


final cause British  

noun

  1. philosophy the end or purpose of a thing or process, as opposed to its efficient cause See cause

"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

Etymology

Origin of final cause

First recorded in 1350–1400

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.

British actor Julian Sands' final cause of death has been deemed undetermined.

From BBC • Jul. 25, 2023

Scientists will determine the final cause of death based on pending lab results.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 8, 2023

The next day, Mr. Ketler’s body was taken to the city’s morgue, where the final cause of death was established.

From New York Times • Jul. 3, 2022

Each final cause leads to another, until we get to the first cause or prime mover.

From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022

In Pascal’s account of why the mercury does not descend in the Torricellian tube the formal and material causes are so attenuated as to be uninteresting, and the final cause has disappeared completely.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

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