reason

noun rea·son \ ˈrē-zᵊn \

Updated on: 16 May 2018

Definition of reason

1 a : a statement offered in explanation or justification

gave reasons that were quite satisfactory

b : a rational ground or motive

a good reason to act soon

c : a sufficient ground of explanation or of logical defense; especially : something (such as a principle or law) that supports a conclusion or explains a fact

the reasons behind her client's action

d : the thing that makes some fact intelligible : cause

the reason for earthquakes

the real reason why he wanted me to stay
—Graham Greene

2 a (1) : the power of comprehending, inferring, or thinking especially in orderly rational ways : intelligence

(2) : proper exercise of the mind

(3) : sanity

b : the sum of the intellectual powers

3 archaic : treatment that affords satisfaction

— in reason

: rightly, justifiably

— within reason

: within reasonable limits

— with reason

: with good cause

See reason defined for English-language learners

See reason defined for kids

Examples of reason in a Sentence

I gave a reason for my absence.
Is there a reason for your strange behavior?
There is a reason why they don't want to come.
I can't give you the report for the simple reason that it isn't yet finished.
She explained her reasons for deciding to change jobs.
He wanted to know the reason for their decision.
Give me one good reason why I should believe you.
For obvious reasons, we can't do that yet.
For reasons of space, some of the charts and graphs have been omitted from the article.
She resigned for personal reasons.

Recent Examples of reason from the Web

The only blip is a 2-1 loss to the Rangers in which Eddie Murray is ejected in the first inning for the oddest of reasons.

— mike klingaman, baltimoresun.com, "Remembering 1983: A look at the Orioles' world championship for the week of May 13-19," 12 May 2018
But the president has plenty of reason to prefer interest rates stay down.

— emily stewart, Vox, "Trump doesn’t respect the independence of any institution around him," 12 May 2018
There are plenty of reasons to object to a mode of progressive politics that emphasizes suppressing reactionary views rather than rebutting them.

— eric levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "Feds Jailed Gun Owner for Making Politically Incorrect Facebook Posts," 11 May 2018
Timing may be one of the reasons Fort Worth got the show.

— robert philpot, star-telegram, "BTS could play anywhere. How did Fort Worth land 2 shows on the K-pop band's world tour? | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 11 May 2018
And if none of those reasons tempt you, then do it for that sweet, sweet sponcon money.

— refinery29.com, "An Open Letter To Sammi Sweetheart: It's Time To Return To The Jersey Shore," 11 May 2018
While the Celtics and 76ers will forever be linked because of their historic rivalry, one of the reasons they are more recently linked is because of the trade that gave the Sixers Fultz and allowed the Celtics to select Jayson Tatum with the No.

— sarah todd, Philly.com, "Precedent might keep Markelle Fultz out of summer league; Bryan Colangelo says there's no 'buyers' remorse' with trade," 11 May 2018
Sweeny lists a variety of reasons for this coffee innovation.

— leah bhabha, Vogue, "Instant Coffee Is Making a Comeback," 11 May 2018
And affairs, says Ross, are one of the big reasons patients seek out counseling.

— madeleine burry, Health.com, "6 Signs It's Time to Go to Couples Therapy," 11 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'reason.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of reason

Middle English resoun, from Anglo-French raisun, from Latin ration-, ratio reason, computation, from reri to calculate, think; probably akin to Goth rathjo account, explanation

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

reason Synonyms

reason

verb

Definition of reason

reasoned; reasoning play \ˈrēz-niŋ, ˈrē-zᵊn-iŋ\

intransitive verb

1 a obsolete : to take part in conversation, discussion, or argument

b : to talk with another so as to influence actions or opinions

can't reason with them

2 : to use the faculty of reason so as to arrive at conclusions

transitive verb

1 archaic : to justify or support with reasons

2 : to persuade or influence by the use of reason

3 : to discover, formulate, or conclude by the use of reason

a carefully reasoned analysis

—

reasoner

play \ˈrēz-nər, ˈrē-zᵊn-ər\ noun

See reason defined for English-language learners

Examples of reason in a Sentence

He lost the ability to reason.
He reasoned that both statements couldn't be true.
She reasoned that something must be wrong.

Recent Examples of reason from the Web

Healing, the trio reasoned, was a group effort, and giving back only felt right.

— rebecca lurye, Courant Community, "New Britain Race In The Park A Bittersweet Mother's Day Tradition," 12 May 2018
The promise of Obama — the integrating, reasoned, moderate promise of incremental progress — has become the depraved and toxic zero-sum culture of Trump.

— andrew sullivan, Daily Intelligencer, "Kanye West and the Question of Freedom," 11 May 2018
Most forays into this subject reasoned that white flight was the result of the white urban exodus into suburbia and the preference of blacks and Hispanics to live in cities.

— michael harriot, The Root, "New Study Shows White People Don’t Like Living Near Black People; Captain Obvious Declines Comment," 25 Apr. 2018
The court reasoned that the volume of mail order business was minor compared to in-store sales and that catalog companies would face too big a burden in having to figure out the correct sales tax, given widely different rates around the company.

— NBC News, "Supreme Court leans against allowing internet sales tax," 17 Apr. 2018
This feature, similar to the signatures of erosion seen near the Strait of Gibraltar, was probably caused by flowing water, the researchers reasoned.

— katherine kornei, Scientific American, "A Megaflood-Powered Mile-High Waterfall Refilled the Mediterranean [Video]," 26 Mar. 2018
Young teens don't care to hear speeches from parents, Coe reasoned.

— rick montgomery, kansascity, "These middle-schoolers have seen sexual harassment and are learning how to stop it | The Kansas City Star," 8 Mar. 2018
As Aguilera reasoned, at least a lot of hit songs came out of it.

— laura bradley, HWD, "Watch Melissa McCarthy Crash Christina Aguilera’s “Carpool Karaoke”," 24 Apr. 2018
With such a tool, reasoned Stark, alternative revenue streams could be built to replace the ad dollars that monetize so much of the content on the web today.

— morgen peck, Glamour, "Cryptocurrency Is Not Just a Boys' Club," 24 Apr. 2018

First Known Use of reason

15th century

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

reason Synonyms

Synonyms

argue, assert, contend, maintain, plead;

Related Words

adduce, cite, mention;

claim, insist;

affirm, aver, avouch, avow;

advance, give, offer, propose, submit;

advise, counsel, recommend, suggest, urge;

convince, persuade;

advocate, champion, defend, enforce, espouse, support;

explain, justify, rationalize;

consider, debate, discuss;

confute, counter, disprove, rebut, refute;

Synonym Discussion of reason

think, cogitate, reflect, reason, speculate, deliberate mean to use one's powers of conception, judgment, or inference. think is general and may apply to any mental activity, but used alone often suggests attainment of clear ideas or conclusions.

- teaches students how to think

cogitate implies deep or intent thinking.

- cogitated on the mysteries of nature

reflect suggests unhurried consideration of something recalled to the mind.

- reflecting on fifty years of married life

reason stresses consecutive logical thinking.

- able to reason brilliantly in debate

speculate implies reasoning about things theoretical or problematic.

- speculated on the fate of the lost explorers

deliberate suggests slow or careful reasoning before forming an opinion or reaching a conclusion or decision.

- the jury deliberated for five hours

REASON Defined for English Language Learners

reason

noun

Definition of reason for English Language Learners

: a statement or fact that explains why something is the way it is, why someone does, thinks, or says something, or why someone behaves a certain way
: a fact, condition, or situation that makes it proper or appropriate to do something, feel something, etc.
: the power of the mind to think and understand in a logical way

reason

verb

Definition of reason for English Language Learners

: to think in a logical way
: to form (a conclusion or judgment) by thinking logically

REASON Defined for Kids

reason

noun rea·son \ ˈrē-zᵊn \

Definition of reason for Students

1 : a statement given to explain a belief or an act

My parents gave a reason for my absence.

2 : a fact that makes something right or fair to do

I have reasons for what I did.

3 : ¹cause 1

The child wanted to know the reason for rain.

4 : the power to think and understand in a logical way

5 : a fair and sensible way of thinking about something

He won't listen to reason.

reason

verb

Definition of reason for Students

reasoned; reasoning

1 : to think in a logical way

2 : to talk with another in a sensible way so as to influence his or her actions or opinions

“It's a fear you can't be … reasoned out of.”
—Kate DiCamillo, Because of Winn-Dixie

3 : to state or ask logically

How, I reasoned, could such a thing happen?

Law Dictionary

reason

noun rea·son

legal Definition of reason

1 : an underlying ground, justification, purpose, motive, or inducement

required to provide reasons for the termination in writing

2 a : the faculty of comprehending, inferring, or distinguishing especially in a fair and orderly way

b : the proper and sane exercise of the mind

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See words that rhyme with reason Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for reason Spanish Central: Translation of reason Nglish: Translation of reason for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of reason for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about reason

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reason

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reason

Definition of reason

reasoner

Examples of reason in a Sentence

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reason Synonyms

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REASON Defined for English Language Learners

reason

Definition of reason for English Language Learners

reason

Definition of reason for English Language Learners

REASON Defined for Kids

reason

Definition of reason for Students

reason

Definition of reason for Students

Law Dictionary

reason

legal Definition of reason

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