Meaning of cause in English

cause

noun

/kɔːz/ us

/kɑːz/

cause noun (REASON)

Add to word list Add to word list

B2 [ C or U ]

the reason why something, especially something bad, happens:

cause of The police are still trying to establish the cause of the fire.

She had died of natural causes.

without cause I wouldn't tell you without (good) cause (= if there was not a (good) reason).

just cause I believe there is just cause (= a fair reason) for taking this action.

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

the cause of something

reasonI frankly don’t understand the reason for the delay.
causeInvestigators have not yet determined the cause of the fire.
rootWe need to get to the root of her problems.
motiveThere seems to have been no motive for the murder.
ground(s)On what grounds was she dismissed?

See more results »

C2 [ U ]

a reason to feel something or to behave in a particular way:

cause for

cause for alarm

cause to do something We have no cause to believe that anyone behaved improperly.

cause for concern He's never given me any cause for concern.

More examplesFewer examples

One common cause of homelessness is separation or divorce.
They are demanding an inquiry into the cause of the accident.
I don't really think he had any cause to complain.
Sugar is a major cause of tooth decay.
Forensic scientists are examining the wreckage for clues about the cause of the explosion.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Causing things to happen

See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Motives and reasons

cause noun (PRINCIPLE)

C1 [ C ]

a socially valuable principle that is strongly supported by some people:

They are fighting for a cause: the liberation of their people.

good cause I'll sponsor you for £10 - it's all in a good cause.

More examplesFewer examples

Her study has considerably advanced the cause of equal rights.
Environment protesters have made common cause with local people to stop the motorway being built.
He has always shown great dedication to the cause.
Vegetarianism is one cause she does not espouse.
He has probably done more to further the cause of interracial harmony than any other person.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Goals and purposes

See more results »

cause

verb [ T ]

/kɔːz/ us

/kɑːz/

to make something happen, especially something bad:

The difficult driving conditions caused several accidents.

[ + obj + to infinitive ] The bright light caused her to blink.

Most heart attacks are caused by blood clots.

[ + two objects ] I hope the children haven't caused you too much trouble.

Synonyms

bring
inflict
visit something on/upon someone old use or formal
wreak formal

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

to make something happen

causeFirefighters determined that a campfire spark caused the wildfire.
bring aboutMany illnesses are brought about by poor diet and lack of exercise.
result inThe fire resulted in damage to their house.
lead toReducing speed limits has led to fewer deaths on the motorways.
makeThe heat is making me tired.
arouseIt's a subject that has aroused a lot of interest.

See more results »

More examplesFewer examples

Sitting hunched over a computer all day can cause problems.
Some types of paint on toys can cause lead-poisoning in children.
The bomb was designed to cause the maximum amount of damage.
He's always trying to cause trouble between us.
Smoking can cause respiratory diseases.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Causing things to happen

See more results »

cause

conjunction

informal (also 'cause)

/kɒz/ us

/kɑːz/

because:

I'll host the party cause I've got plenty of room at my house.

I try to practise my French every day, cause I'm not very good at it.

Synonym

cos UK not standard

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Linguistics: connecting words which introduce a cause or reason

See more results »

(Definition of cause from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

cause | American Dictionary

cause

noun

/kɔz/

cause noun (REASON)

Add to word list Add to word list

[ C/U ]

something without which something else would not happen:

[ C ] The investigation will determine the cause of the airplane accident.

[ C ] She studied the causes of human behavior.

[ C/U ]

Cause is also reason for doing or feeling something:

[ U ] He had just cause to feel disturbed by these events.

[ U ] There is no cause for alarm.

cause noun (PRINCIPLE)

[ C ]

an idea or principle strongly supported by some people:

He devoted himself to charitable causes and gave away millions of dollars.

cause

verb [ T ] us

/kɔz/

The wind and rain caused several accidents.

(Definition of cause from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of cause

cause

Such situations require fundamental knowledge of these interactions as a possible cause of anomalous transport phenomena in magnetized plasmas.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Physically, this is because, on average, the mean shear causes larger separation between particle pairs so that larger eddies disperse them.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

What other phonetic cause(s) may be involved in this fascinating phonological process is certainly not obvious at this point in time.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Improved understanding of the hormonal causes and consequences of symptom fluctuation may lead to improved pharmacological and psychological treatments.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

An additional patient-blaming tactic is to ascribe psychological causes as the source of pain.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

For instance, over-blowing on a wind instrument can cause an octave rise, which holds as the pressure is reduced.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The excited atom interacts with the vacuum fluctuations which cause the spontaneous emission of radiation.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Another possible cause for the generally higher stresses in the present study is that the present mixing layer is in relatively early development.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These stresses and antisocial behavior may, in turn, cause an increase in children's internalizing problems through the life course.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Removing water from living tissues causes a series of dehydration stresses.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

But the argument from selective refutation can be misleading when it causes us to fail to notice that the surviving hypothesis has its own defects.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

This effect causes target position to be misperceived when it is surrounded by a frame presented asymmetrically.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These urban redevelopment measures caused the city to spread into surrounding areas.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

A doctor told him that this condition was caused by excess consumption of roasted and fried food.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

He took up the cause of private enterprise and complained of excessive taxes and government interference.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with cause

cause

These are words often used in combination with cause.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

cause alarm

News of royal displeasure could cause alarm, but usually the king sought consensus, through negotiation and discussion, and achieved it.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

cause concern

The inflationary expectations of yet another group had begun to cause concern.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

cause death

These other chromosomal anomalies occur less frequently and often cause death in infancy.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

See all collocations with cause

What is the pronunciation of cause?

Translations of cause

in Chinese (Traditional)

原因, （尤指不好的事情發生的）原因，起因, 理由…

Meaning of cause in English

cause noun (REASON)

cause noun (PRINCIPLE)

cause | American Dictionary

cause noun (REASON)

cause noun (PRINCIPLE)

cause

Examples of cause

Collocations with cause

cause

Translations of cause

Browse

Learn more with +Plus

Learn more with +Plus