cause
cause
/kɔːz/
1 countable cause (of something) the person or thing that makes something happen Unemployment is a major cause of poverty.
The report ignores the root cause of the problem.
Smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer.
Drinking and driving is one of the most common causes of traffic accidents.
It was impossible to determine the cause of death.
There was discussion about the fire and its likely cause.
He died of natural causes.
It is not easy to separate cause and effect in this situation.
[TOPICS Change, cause and effect A2 Collocations
adjective
verb + cause
cause + verb
be
lie in something
preposition
cause of
phrases
cause and effect
the cause of death
due to natural causes…
2 uncountable a reason for having particular feelings or behaving in a particular way cause for something There is no cause for concern.
The food was excellent—I had no cause for complaint.
with/without cause If your child is absent without good cause (= a good reason), you may receive a warning from the school board.
Collocations
adjective
verb + cause
preposition
cause for
phrases
cause for concern
with good cause
without good cause…
3 countable an organization or idea that people support or fight for Animal welfare campaigners raised £70 000 for their cause last year.
a good/worthy cause (= an organization that does good work, such as a charity)
He dedicated his life to fighting for the Republican cause.
The donation is the biggest private gift to a humanitarian cause.
She has long championed the cause of civil liberties.
Collocations
adjective
verb + cause
preposition
for the cause of
in the cause of
in a/the cause…
phrases
(all) for a good cause
(all) in a good cause
Idioms
cause
/kɔːz/
to make something happen, especially something bad or unpleasant; to make somebody do something
cause something Do they know what caused the fire?
Are you causing trouble again?
Doctors say her condition is causing some concern.
Recently there have been several deaths caused by dangerous driving.
cause something for somebody/something The drought is causing problems for many farmers.
cause something to something/somebody The earthquake caused widespread damage to property.
The revelations caused some discomfort to the president.
cause somebody something The project is still causing him a lot of problems.
cause something/somebody to do something The poor harvest caused prices to rise sharply.
The bad weather is likely to cause people to stay away.
Word Origin
Middle English: from Old French, from Latin causa (noun), causare (verb).