cause

cause
cause [kôz]
n.
[ME < OFr < L causa, a cause, reason, judicial process, lawsuit: infl. (in CAUSE senses 4 & 5) by CASE1]
1. anything producing an effect or result
2. a person or thing acting voluntarily or involuntarily as the agent that brings about an effect or result [drinking was the cause of his downfall]
3. a reason, motive, or ground for some action, feeling, etc.; esp., sufficient reason [cause for complaint]
4. any objective or movement that a person or group is interested in and supports, esp. one involving social reform
5. Law an action or question to be resolved by a court of law
vt.
caused, causing
to be the cause of; bring about; make happen; effect, induce, produce, compel, etc.
——————
make common cause with
to work together with toward the same objective; join forces with
causeless
adj.
causer
n.
SYN.- CAUSE, in its distinctive sense, refers to a situation, event, or agent that produces an effect or result [carelessness is often a cause of accident ]; REASON implies the mental activity of a rational being in explaining or justifying some act or thought [she had a reason for laughing ]; a MOTIVE is an impulse, emotion, or desire that leads to action [the motive for a crime ]; an ANTECEDENT is an event or thing that is the predecessor of, and is responsible for, a later event or thing [war always has its antecedents]; a DETERMINANT is a cause that helps to determine the character of an effect or result [ambition was a determinant in his success ]

English World dictionary. . 2014.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • cause — 1 n 1: something that brings about an effect or result the negligent act which was the cause of the plaintiff s injury ◇ The cause of an injury must be proven in both tort and criminal cases. actual cause: cause in fact in this entry but–for… …   Law dictionary

  • cause — [ koz ] n. f. • XIIe; lat. causa « cause » et « procès » → chose I ♦ Ce qui produit un effet (considéré par rapport à cet effet). 1 ♦ (1170) Ce par quoi un événement, une action humaine arrive, se fait. ⇒ origine; motif, objet, raison, 3. sujet.… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Cause — • Cause, as the correlative of effect, is understood as being that which in any way gives existence to, or contributes towards the existence of, any thing; which produces a result; to which the origin of any thing is to be ascribed Catholic… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • cause — CAUSE. s. f. Principe, ce qui fait qu une chose est. Dieu est la première de toutes les causes, la cause des causes, la souveraine cause, la cause universelle. On appelle Dieu, absolument et par excellence, Cause première, comme on appelle les… …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie Française 1798

  • cause — Cause, qui fait faire quelque chose, Causa. La meilleure cause et la pire, Superior causa et inferior. B. ex Cicerone. Les causes durent tousjours et perseverent, Manent causae. Tu as ouy les causes de mon conseil, Audisti consilij mei motus. Par …   Thresor de la langue françoyse

  • cause — CAUSE. s. f. Principe, ce qui fait qu une chose est. Dieu est la premiere de toutes les causes, la cause des causes, la souveraine cause. On appelle Dieu absolument & par excellence, Cause premiere; comme on appelle les creatures Causes secondes …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • 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. [1913 Webster] Cause is substance exerting its power into… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • cause — cause, causal explanation In non specialist contexts, to ask for the cause of some particular happening is to ask what made it happen, or brought it about. To give a causal explanation is to answer such questions, usually by specifying some prior …   Dictionary of sociology

  • cause — n 1 Cause, determinant, antecedent, reason, occasion are comparable when denoting what in whole or in part produces an effect or result. Cause is applicable to an agent (as a circumstance, condition, event, or force) that contributes to the… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • causé — causé, ée (kô zé, zée) part. passé. 1°   Produit par une cause. •   Toutes choses étant causées ou causantes, PASC. dans COUSIN. 2°   Occasionné. Un incendie causé par un accident. 3°   Motivé. •   M. de Bouillon voulait une absence, et une… …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

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