reason
Americannoun
-
reasons
plural
-
a basis or cause, as for some belief, action, fact, event, etc..
the reasons for declaring war.
-
a statement presented in justification or explanation of a belief or action.
I dare you to give me one good reason for quitting school!
-
sufficient cause, as produced by a situation that makes an act, feeling, etc., obviously proper or appropriate.
After the mess he made of our yard, we have good reason to look for another landscaper.
- Synonyms:
- rationalization, excuse
-
the mental powers concerned with forming conclusions, judgments, or inferences.
Effective leadership requires a person of reason.
- Synonyms:
- intelligence, mind, intellect, understanding
-
sound judgment; good sense.
-
normal or sound powers of mind; sanity.
-
Logic. a premise of an argument.
-
Philosophy.
-
the faculty or power of acquiring intellectual knowledge, either by direct understanding of first principles or by argument.
-
the power of intelligent and dispassionate thought, or of conduct influenced by such thought.
-
Kantianism. the faculty by which the ideas of pure reason are created.
-
verb (used without object)
-
reasons,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reasoned,
past participle, past
-
reasoning
present participle
-
to think or argue in a logical manner.
-
to form conclusions, judgments, or inferences from facts or premises.
-
to urge reasons which should determine belief or action.
- Synonyms:
- persuade
verb (used with object)
-
reasons,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reasoned,
past participle, past
-
reasoning
present participle
-
to think through logically, as a problem (often followed byout ).
-
to conclude or infer.
-
to convince, persuade, etc., by reasoning.
-
to support with reasons.
idioms
-
bring (someone) to reason, to induce a change of opinion in (someone) through presentation of arguments; convince.
The mother tried to bring her rebellious daughter to reason.
-
in / within reason, in accord with reason; justifiable; proper.
She tried to keep her demands in reason.
-
by reason of, on account of; because of.
He was consulted about the problem by reason of his long experience.
-
stand to reason, to be clear, obvious, or logical.
With such an upbringing it stands to reason that the child will be spoiled.
-
with reason, with justification; properly.
The government is concerned about the latest crisis, and with reason.
noun
-
the faculty of rational argument, deduction, judgment, etc
-
sound mind; sanity
-
a cause or motive, as for a belief, action, etc
-
an argument in favour of or a justification for something
-
philosophy the intellect regarded as a source of knowledge, as contrasted with experience
-
logic grounds for a belief; a premise of an argument supporting that belief
-
because of
-
within moderate or justifiable bounds
-
it is logical or obvious
it stands to reason that he will lose
-
to be persuaded peaceably
-
political justifications for an immoral act
verb
-
(when tr, takes a clause as object) to think logically or draw (logical conclusions) from facts or premises
-
to urge or seek to persuade by reasoning
-
to work out or resolve (a problem) by reasoning
Usage
The construction reason is because is criticized in a number of usage guides: The reason for the long delays was because the costs greatly exceeded the original estimates. One objection to this construction is based on its redundancy: the word because (literally, by cause ) contains within it the meaning of reason; thus saying the reason is because is like saying “The cause is by cause,” which would never be said. A second objection is based on the claim that because can introduce only adverbial clauses and that reason is requires completion by a noun clause. Critics would substitute that for because in the offending construction: The reason for the long delays in completing the project was that the costs. … Although the objections described here are frequently raised, reason is because is still common in almost all levels of speech and occurs often in edited writing as well. A similar charge of redundancy is made against the reason why, which is also a well-established idiom: The reason why the bill failed to pass was the defection of three key senators.
The expression the reason is because… should be avoided. Instead one should say either this is because… or the reason is that…
Synonym Usage
Reason, cause, motive are terms for a circumstance (or circumstances) which brings about or explains certain results. A reason is an explanation of a situation or circumstance which made certain results seem possible or appropriate: The reason for the robbery was the victim's display of his money. The cause is the way in which the circumstances produce the effect, that is, make a specific action seem necessary or desirable: The cause was the robber's extreme need of money. A motive is the hope, desire, or other force which starts the action (or an action) in an attempt to produce specific results: The motive was to get money to buy food for his family.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
reasonsimple
-
reasonssimple
-
have reasonedperfect
-
has reasonedperfect
-
am reasoningprogressive
-
are reasoningprogressive
-
is reasoningprogressive
-
have been reasoningperfect progressive
-
has been reasoningperfect progressive
Past
-
reasonedsimple
-
had reasonedperfect
-
was reasoningprogressive
-
were reasoningprogressive
-
had been reasoningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reason
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English resoun, reisun (noun), from Old French reisun, reson, from Latin ratiōn- (stem of ratiō ) ratio
Explanation
A reason explains why you do something. The reason you go to school is to learn things (and because it's the law). Reason usually has to do with thought and logic, as opposed to emotion. If people think you show good reason, or are reasonable, it means you think things through. If people think you have a good reason for doing something, it means you have a motive that makes sense. Reason can also be a verb. You might reason something out, which means that you look at all sides of the issue and then and decide what to do.
Vocabulary lists containing reason
Argumentative Writing
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Think Tank: Thought-Provoking Vocabulary
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Argumentative Writing, List 2
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
It shaped how I eat and cook today and it’s the reason why I have this profession.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
It said the King was "mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgement and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss".
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
History also gives physicists a reason to pay attention to tiny discrepancies.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026
Bass: There was no reason for me to seek an endorsement from an organization that I knew was not going to endorse me.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026
And that for some reason always made me smile, and so lifted my spirits.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
At that point Reform said his absence was due to "personal reasons".
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
One final bit of geekery that can help us understand whether bond yields are up for good reasons or bad is what happens to stocks when yields rise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
There are also two very different reasons someone can lack the antigen.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026
That’s just one of countless reasons why energy prices are predicted to keep spiking.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
Not for wit or competence or any of the reasons for which Clare had been chosen, but for her kindness.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Coxon said he gave it a tricky crossword puzzle and marveled as it reasoned through the problem.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
The researchers reasoned that nanoparticles could be separated from the reaction mixture through centrifugation, which could make it easier to recover the DNA afterward.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
Thus, prosecutors reasoned that they could not prove Tilford created the recording and did so without the others’ knowledge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
"It is possible to say that more could have been done, but there was a serious risk of financial meltdown," Tombs reasoned.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
The carriage was long gone, but Frankie reasoned that if we reached the city’s edge, we’d find another late-night driver to give us a ride.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
Law students educated in this way will be grounded in ethical and principled reasoning and adept at navigating an era when AI tools stand to shape changes in the practice of their profession.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
Cybersecurity stocks have been a hot trade this year, with investors reasoning that they could benefit from a rush of spending tied to artificial-intelligence threat risk.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026
Shaw attended Tuesday’s hearing and criticized Sachs’ reasoning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Vallely said he could understand the reasoning behind banning wearing Meta glasses "if people are being crude and rude", but he said the intention behind filming was key.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
What was his reasoning for you to step aside and let him in that room?
From "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher
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.
