as in creates
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
1
as in determinants
someone or something responsible for a result
the much-debated causes of the war
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in campaigns
a series of activities undertaken to achieve a goal
joined the freedom fighters' cause as a young man
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of causes
Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
According to Tuff, what causes leaders to miss these paradigm shifts is not ignorance but hesitation.
—Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
Shingles causes a painful, itchy rash, blisters, and can cause long-term nerve damage — and impacts 1 in 3 people.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 29 Jan. 2026
Permafrost thaw also causes structural challenges.
—Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 29 Jan. 2026
The water pressure then causes the vehicle to rise and slide on a thin layer of water between the tires and the road, making the driver lose control.
—Ca Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Placing toilets, showers, and sinks too far away from the main drain stack causes clogs in the future.
—Kamron Sanders, The Spruce, 22 Jan. 2026
That mostly comes from the concrete materials and often un-insulated space that causes leaky air.
—Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 22 Jan. 2026
This causes the snow to melt faster, because darker colors absorb the sun’s rays rather than reflect them as white does.
—Laura Kiniry, Popular Science, 22 Jan. 2026
Literary Hub, 28 Jan. 2026
Low pay and an increase in retiring attorneys are some of the main causes, Mecklenburg County Chief Public Defender Kevin Tully told The Observer in 2024.
—Rebecca Noel, Charlotte Observer, 28 Jan. 2026
The 1,200 volunteers canvassing this week are asking a series of questions from standard demographic queries to log age and race, to inquiries aimed at understanding mental health and the various causes that lead to homelessness.
—Claire Wang, Oc Register, 28 Jan. 2026
Many tech leaders, including Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Larry Ellison, have already signed the Giving Pledge—the initiative launched by Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates, and Warren Buffett to give the majority of their wealth to charitable causes.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026
Of the 400 youth age 18 to 21 that died for preventable reasons (suicide and overdose being the leading causes of their death) in a recent 4-year period studied by the Office of the Child Advocate, almost half had been involved with DCF, and 60 of these young people had been in foster care.
—Sarah Healy Eagan, Hartford Courant, 27 Jan. 2026
The causes of the two fires are under investigation.
—Joe Brandt, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026
The travel vlogger’s father revealed in a Monday Facebook post that his son died of natural causes.
—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2026
The causes of death for each individual have not been determined.
—Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 27 Jan. 2026
Verb
Duesberg kept making his argument well after evidence that the human immunodeficiency virus, HIV, causes AIDS became incontestable.
—Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 29 Jan. 2026
According to Tuff, what causes leaders to miss these paradigm shifts is not ignorance but hesitation.
—Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
Shingles causes a painful, itchy rash, blisters, and can cause long-term nerve damage — and impacts 1 in 3 people.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 29 Jan. 2026
Permafrost thaw also causes structural challenges.
—Chris Young, Interesting Engineering, 29 Jan. 2026
The water pressure then causes the vehicle to rise and slide on a thin layer of water between the tires and the road, making the driver lose control.
—Ca Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Placing toilets, showers, and sinks too far away from the main drain stack causes clogs in the future.
—Kamron Sanders, The Spruce, 22 Jan. 2026
That mostly comes from the concrete materials and often un-insulated space that causes leaky air.
—Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 22 Jan. 2026
This causes the snow to melt faster, because darker colors absorb the sun’s rays rather than reflect them as white does.
—Laura Kiniry, Popular Science, 22 Jan. 2026
Noun
Hippocrates and his followers held on to their belief in natural causes.
—Literary Hub, 28 Jan. 2026
Low pay and an increase in retiring attorneys are some of the main causes, Mecklenburg County Chief Public Defender Kevin Tully told The Observer in 2024.
—Rebecca Noel, Charlotte Observer, 28 Jan. 2026
The 1,200 volunteers canvassing this week are asking a series of questions from standard demographic queries to log age and race, to inquiries aimed at understanding mental health and the various causes that lead to homelessness.
—Claire Wang, Oc Register, 28 Jan. 2026
Many tech leaders, including Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Larry Ellison, have already signed the Giving Pledge—the initiative launched by Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates, and Warren Buffett to give the majority of their wealth to charitable causes.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026
Of the 400 youth age 18 to 21 that died for preventable reasons (suicide and overdose being the leading causes of their death) in a recent 4-year period studied by the Office of the Child Advocate, almost half had been involved with DCF, and 60 of these young people had been in foster care.
—Sarah Healy Eagan, Hartford Courant, 27 Jan. 2026
The causes of the two fires are under investigation.
—Joe Brandt, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026
The travel vlogger’s father revealed in a Monday Facebook post that his son died of natural causes.
—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2026
The causes of death for each individual have not been determined.
—Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 27 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for causes
Verb
-
Calvo's second executive order creates a task force to review business licenses in the city that may have ties to Cuba's government, with the potential for licenses to be revoked.—
Ivan Taylor,
CBS News,
13 Jan. 2026
-
This article was generated by the Bay Area Home Report Bot, software that analyzes home sales or other data and creates an article based on a template created by humans.—
Bay Area Home Report,
Mercury News,
13 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
In a new secondary analysis of the larger trial published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine, Patti and her colleagues asked how different social determinants of health affected outcomes after bariatric surgery compared to medical therapy for people with type 2 diabetes and obesity.—
Elizabeth Cooney,
STAT,
19 Jan. 2026
-
This research suggests that social determinants of health, including financial stress and food insecurity, may belong in the same conversation.—
Katia Hetter,
CNN Money,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Both Ahmed and Khot described their ad campaigns as costing in the six figures.—
Robert McCoppin,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Jan. 2026
-
But there are also advertising campaigns and non-linear TV activations planned from Svedka, Smirnoff and Don Julio.—
John Kell,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The authors never claimed to have demonstrated that such reading generates feelings of empathy, though others—including the New York Times—have sometimes confused those high scores as evidence of empathy.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 Jan. 2026
-
For example, the 8K Milky Way stitching feature automatically generates mosaics far wider than a single frame.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
For these reasons, snow mushrooms are a good choice for dry skin but can also be appropriate for all skin types.—
Celia Shatzman,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said the forklift program stands out for many reasons.—
Jermont Terry,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Once markets started moving lower, thin liquidity intensified such price movements, according to several analysts who provided input for this article.—
Charles Lloyd Bovaird II,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed amid mostly modest movements in Europe following some sharper swings in Asia.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Amazon’s staggering jobs cuts this week, the second wave since October, brings the commerce giant’s recent layoffs to roughly 9% of its corporate workforce.—
Lisa Eadicicco,
CNN Money,
31 Jan. 2026
-
On top of clarity, this lunation brings recognition or closure, particularly for a long-term professional goal.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Goldie, like Bucephalus, seized the bit and galloped into the intoxicating world of knowing, of finding out, of discovering reasons and causations.—
Annie Proulx,
New Yorker,
10 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Causes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/causes. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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