cause 1 of 2

verb

Definition of causenext
as in to create
to be the cause of (a situation, action, or state of mind) the ice storm caused a massive power outage

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

cause

2 of 2

noun

ˈkȯz How to pronounce cause (audio)
1
as in reason
someone or something responsible for a result the much-debated causes of the war

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in movement
a series of activities undertaken to achieve a goal joined the freedom fighters' cause as a young man

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cause
Verb
Prosecutors said Siedlecki’s husband and the child’s father, Hussein Ali Abughazaleh, placed Jannah in a bath with dangerously hot water, causing severe burns over more than 30 percent of her body. — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 5 Oct. 2026 The skin’s microbiome shifts with age and hormones, allowing more odor-causing bacteria to thrive. — Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Oct. 2026
Noun
Washington continued to struggle moving the ball, but mistakes from USC helped its cause. — Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2026 Anna's cause of death was suffocation caused by pressure on her neck, NHK reports police saying. — Kevin Shalvey, ABC News, 4 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for cause
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cause
  1. create
  2. reason
  3. movement
  4. bring
  5. determinant
  6. campaign
  7. generate
  8. causation
Verb
  • Using sine wave generators and pink lighting so saturated it essentially blots out all other color and shadow, Young and Zazeela created a space that’s somehow both static and full of life.
    — Sadie Sartini Garner, Pitchfork, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Simply liking someone, feeling close to them or spending hours together isn’t enough to create an attachment relationship.
    — Pascal Vrticka, Scientific American, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of create
Noun
  • The reason is that sellers will give up some money to avoid the risk that a buyer’s financing falls through.
    — Bilin Lin, Fortune, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Borisov’s brainy, tender, deeply contemplative performance lends an anchoring humanity to a film that might otherwise have curdled into sourness and despair — though there’s plenty of reason for that.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of reason
Noun
  • Troop movements over the past couple of weeks indicate the group is concentrating on seizing the southwestern highlands, which could then open the way for a push toward the government’s capital, Aden.
    — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Fifteen years later, the niche local broadcast on K-Beach Radio has ballooned into a cultural movement that extends far behind his alma mater’s campus.
    — Kailyn Brown, Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of movement
Verb
  • Their arrival brings the number of satellites developed for GHGSat to 13.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Oct. 2026
  • College Football also brings you some great action this weekend.
    — OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of bring
Noun
  • Use Multiple Data Points Wealth indicators provide a partial snapshot of an individual’s financial position and should not be the sole determinant of a donor’s capacity to make a significant gift.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Many of those outcomes can be attributed to social determinants of health, like affordability, care access and transportation.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of determinant
Noun
  • His hard-line security policies have been a pillar of his campaign, and polls show these proposals are popular among Brazilians.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Macklemore later claimed that he was dropped from the trek after Kraft mounted a pressure campaign against Sheeran to nix the rapper.
    — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of campaign
Verb
  • For a movie that had once been generating top Oscar buzz, including a potential first win for Cruise, it has since been hit with critiques that have described it as baffling, brilliant or just plain bad.
    — David Mack, CNN Money, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Ellison and Kreiz will also be under pressure to deliver a clear roadmap for generating bigger profits from its streaming pillars, HBO Max and Paramount+.
    — Todd Spangler, Variety, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of generate
Noun
  • While correlation can never be confused with causation, major wealth creation events have historically been accompanied by significant increases in philanthropic activity.
    — Joe Crome, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • But observational studies can only establish association — not causation.
    — Subramaniam C. Krishnan, STAT, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of causation

Phrases Containing cause

Browse Nearby Words

causations
cause
cause célèbre
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Cite this Entry

“Cause.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cause. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.

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