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cause - 11 dictionary results

cause

  [kawz] noun, verb, caused, caus⋅ing.
Use cause in a Sentence
–noun
1. 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?
2. the reason or motive for some human action: The good news was a cause for rejoicing.
3. good or sufficient reason: to complain without cause; to be dismissed for cause.
4. Law.
a. a ground of legal action; the matter over which a person goes to law.
b. a case for judicial decision.
5. any subject of discussion or debate.
6. a principle, ideal, goal, or movement to which a person or group is dedicated: the Socialist cause; the human rights cause.
7. the welfare of a person or group, seen as a subject of concern: support for the cause of the American Indian.
8. Philosophy.
a. the end or purpose for which a thing is done or produced.
b. 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)
9. to be the cause of; bring about.
—Idiom
10. 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:
1175–1225; ME < L causa reason, sake, case

Related forms:
caus⋅a⋅ble, adjective
caus⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun
causeless, adjective
cause⋅less⋅ly, adverb
cause⋅less⋅ness, noun
causer, noun

Synonyms:
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. 9. effect, make, create, produce.

'cause

  [kawz, kuhz, unstressed kuhz]
–conjunction Informal.
because.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME; aph. var.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To cause
cause   (kôz)   
n.  
    1. The producer of an effect, result, or consequence.
    2. The one, such as a person, event, or condition, that is responsible for an action or result.
    3. A ground for legal action.
    4. A lawsuit.
  2. A basis for an action or response; a reason: The doctor's report gave no cause for alarm.
  3. A goal or principle served with dedication and zeal: "the cause of freedom versus tyranny" (Hannah Arendt).
  4. The interests of a person or group engaged in a struggle: "The cause of America is in great measure the cause of all mankind" (Thomas Paine).
  5. Law
    1. A ground for legal action.
    2. A lawsuit.
  6. A subject under debate or discussion.
tr.v.   caused, caus·ing, caus·es
  1. To be the cause of or reason for; result in.
  2. To bring about or compel by authority or force: The moderator invoked a rule causing the debate to be ended.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin causa, reason, purpose.]
caus'a·ble adj., cause'less adj., caus'er n.
Synonyms: These nouns denote what brings about or is associated with an effect or result. A cause is an agent or condition that permits the occurrence of an effect or leads to a result: "He is not only dull in himself, but the cause of dullness in others" (Samuel Foote).
Reason refers to what explains the occurrence or nature of an effect: There was no obvious reason for the accident.
Occasion is a situation that permits or stimulates existing causes to come into play: "The immediate occasion of his departure ... was the favorable opportunity ... of migrating in a pleasant way" (Thomas De Quincey).
Antecedent refers to what has gone before and implies a relationship—but not necessarily a causal one—with what ensues: Some of the antecedents of World War II lie in economic conditions in Europe following World War I.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Cause

Cause\ (k[add]z), n. [F. cause, fr. L. causa. Cf. Cause, v., Kickshaw.]

1. That which produces or effects a result; that from which anything proceeds, and without which it would not exist.

Cause is substance exerting its power into act, to make one thing begin to be. --Locke.

2. That which is the occasion of an action or state; ground; reason; motive; as, cause for rejoicing.

3. Sake; interest; advantage. [Obs.]

I did it not for his cause. --2 Cor. vii. 12.

4. (Law) A suit or action in court; any legal process by which a party endeavors to obtain his claim, or what he regards as his right; case; ground of action.

5. Any subject of discussion or debate; matter; question; affair in general.

What counsel give you in this weighty cause! --Shak.

6. The side of a question, which is espoused, advocated, and upheld by a person or party; a principle which is advocated; that which a person or party seeks to attain.

God befriend us, as our cause is just. --Shak.

The part they take against me is from zeal to the cause. --Burke.

Efficient cause, the agent or force that produces a change or result.

Final cause, the end, design, or object, for which anything is done.

Formal cause, the elements of a conception which make the conception or the thing conceived to be what it is; or the idea viewed as a formative principle and co["o]perating with the matter.

Material cause, that of which anything is made.

Proximate cause. See under Proximate.

To make common cause with, to join with in purposes and aims. --Macaulay.

Syn: Origin; source; mainspring; motive; reason; incitement; inducement; purpose; object; suit; action.

Cause

Cause\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Caused; p. pr. & v. n. Causing.] [F. causer, fr. cause, fr. L. causa. See Cause, n., and cf. Acouse.] To effect as an agent; to produce; to be the occasion of; to bring about; to bring into existence; to make; -- usually followed by an infinitive, sometimes by that with a finite verb.

I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days. --Gen. vii. 4.

Cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans. --Col. iv. 16.

Syn: To create; produce; beget; effect; occasion; originate; induce; bring about.

Cause

Cause\, v. i. To assign or show cause; to give a reason; to make excuse. [Obs.] --Spenser.

Cause

Cause\, conj. Abbreviation of Because. --B. Jonson.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : cause
Spanish: causa,
German: die Ursache,
Japanese: 原因
More Translations »

cause  (n.)
c.1225, from L. causa "a cause, reason, judicial process, lawsuit," of unknown origin. Cause célèbre "celebrated legal case" is 1763, from Fr.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: cause
Function: noun
1 : something that brings about an effect or result cause of the plaintiff's injury>
NOTE: The cause of an injury must be proven in both tort and criminal cases.
actual cause
: CAUSE IN FACT in this entry
but–for cause
: CAUSE IN FACT in this entry
cause in fact
: a cause without which the result would not have occurred called also actual cause but-for cause
concurrent cause
: a cause that joins simultaneously with another cause to produce a result called also concurring cause —compare INTERVENING CAUSE and, SUPERSEDING CAUSE in this entry
di·rect cause
: PROXIMATE CAUSE in this entry
ef·fi·cient in·ter·ven·ing cause
: SUPERSEDING CAUSE in this entry
intervening cause
1 : an independent cause that follows another cause in time in producing the result but does not interrupt the chain of causation if foreseeable called also supervening cause —compare CONCURRENT CAUSE and, SUPERSEDING CAUSE in this entry
2 : SUPERSEDING CAUSE in this entry
legal cause
: PROXIMATE CAUSE in this entry
procuring cause
: one (as a broker) that sets in motion a continuous series of events culminating esp. in the sale or leasing of real estate procuring cause of the sale even though the listing had expired>
pro·duc·ing cause
: an efficient, exciting, or contributing cause (as an act, practice, or event) that produces an injury which would not have occurred without it producing cause of his disability> —used esp. in workers' compensation and consumer protection cases
NOTE: A producing cause lacks the element of foreseeability associated with a proximate cause, being more exclusively concerned with causation in fact.
proximate cause
: a cause that sets in motion a sequence of events uninterrupted by any superseding causes and that results in a usually foreseeable effect (as an injury) which would not otherwise have occurred called also direct cause legal cause —see also Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Company in the IMPORTANT CASES section —compare REMOTE CAUSE in this entry
re·mote cause
: a cause that is followed by a superseding cause interrupting the chain of causation; also : a cause that in ordinary experience does not lead to a particular effect —compare PROXIMATE CAUSE in this entry
su·per·sed·ing cause
: an unforeseeable intervening cause that interrupts the chain of causation and becomes the proximate cause of the effect called also efficient intervening cause intervening cause —compare CONCURRENT CAUSE and, INTERVENING CAUSE 1 in this entry
supervening cause
: INTERVENING CAUSE in this entry
2 : a reason or justification for an action or state (as belief): as a : GOOD CAUSE in this entry cause> b : JUST CAUSE in this entry cause to terminate an employee>
NOTE: The circumstances under which cause, good cause, just cause, probable cause, reasonable cause, or sufficient cause exists are determined on a case by case basis. These terms are often used interchangeably, and the distinctions between them are sometimes unclear.
good cause
: a substantial reason put forth in good faith that is not unreasonable, arbitrary, or irrational and that is sufficient to create an excuse for an act under the law good cause for failure to pay child support> good cause for removal of a trustee>
just cause
1 : cause that a person of ordinary intelligence would consider a fair and reasonable justification for an act —used esp. in cases involving termination of employment and denial of unemployment benefits
2 : GOOD CAUSE in this entry
prob··a·ble cause
/'prä-b&-b&l-/
1 : a reasonable ground in fact and circumstance for a belief in the existence of certain circumstances (as that an offense has been or is being committed, that a person is guilty of an offense, that a particular search will uncover contraband, that an item to be seized is in a particular place, or that a specific fact or cause of action exists) probable cause, warrantless search of vehicle may extend to every part of vehicle where objects of search might be concealed —State v. Nixon, 593 North Eastern Reporter, Second Series 1210 (1992)> called also reasonable cause sufficient cause —compare REASONABLE SUSPICION
NOTE: The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution stipulates that “no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause.” Probable cause is also required for a warrantless arrest. Probable cause is an objective standard rather than a function of subjective opinion or suspicion not grounded in fact or circumstance. However, the facts or circumstances need not be of the nature of certainty necessary to establish proof in court.
2 : justification for an administrative search based on a showing that it is to be conducted in accordance with standardized nonarbitrary regulatory procedures designed to further public interest in regulatory enforcement that outweighs the intrusiveness of the search
reasonable cause
1 : PROBABLE CAUSE in this entry; also : a fact or circumstance that justifies a reasonable suspicion —compare REASONABLE SUSPICION
2 : a reason that would motivate a person of ordinary intelligence under the circumstances <reasonable cause to believe abuse had occurred>
3 : something (as an event or the exercise of ordinary care or prudence) that excuses or justifies failure to file a tax return on time
suf·fi·cient cause
: cause that is deemed enough to provide an excuse under the law: as a : GOOD CAUSE in this entry —often used in the phrase good and sufficient cause b : PROBABLE CAUSE in this entry
3 a : a ground of a legal action cause of divorce embraced within the statutory cause of cruel and inhuman treatment —Case & Comment> b : CASE cause then pending —Railroad T. Gerwatowski>
4 in the civil law of Louisiana : the reason for making a contract —compare FRUSTRATION 2
NOTE: Under the Louisiana Civil Code, if a contract's cause is illicit or immoral, the contract is absolutely null. If the cause fails after the contract is made (as when a leased building cannot be occupied because of a fire), the contract may either be not enforced or only partially enforced.

Main Entry: cause
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: caused; caus·ing
1 : to serve as the cause of causing injuries for which she sues —Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Company, 162 N.E.99 (1928)>
2 : to effect by command, authority, or force cause an investigation to be made>
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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cause

In addition to the idioms beginning with cause, also see lost cause.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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