because
English Edit
Alternative forms Edit
- (obsolete) bycause, (dialectal) becos
- (slang) 'cause, cos, cuz, coz, 'cos, 'cuz, 'coz, b/c, bc, bcos, bcoz, bcs, bcus
Etymology Edit
From Middle English bi cause, from bi (“by”) + cause, modelled on Old French par cause.
Pronunciation Edit
Adverb Edit
because (not comparable)
- For the reason (that).
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 2:3:
- And God blessed the seuenth day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his worke, which God created and made.
- On account (of), for sake (of).
- My life is ruined because of you!
- (by ellipsis) Used alone to refuse to provide a full answer a question begun with "why", usually taken as an anapodoton of the elided full phrase "Because I said so".
Derived terms Edit
Translations Edit
on account
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word used in place of an answer to "why"
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Conjunction Edit
because
- By or for the cause that; on this account that; for the reason that.
- I hid myself because I was afraid.
- 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter I, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
- I was about to say that I had known the Celebrity from the time he wore kilts. But I see I will have to amend that, because he was not a celebrity then, nor, indeed, did he achieve fame until some time after I left New York for the West.
- 2013 May-June, Katrina G. Claw, “Rapid Evolution in Eggs and Sperm”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3:
- In plants, the ability to recognize self from nonself plays an important role in fertilization, because self-fertilization will result in less diverse offspring than fertilization with pollen from another individual.
- 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XVII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
- “Perhaps it is because I have been excommunicated. It's absurd, but I feel like the Jackdaw of Rheims.” ¶ She winced and bowed her head. Each time that he spoke flippantly of the Church he caused her pain.
- As is known, inferred, or determined from the fact that.
- It must be broken, because I pressed the button and nothing happened.
- I don't think he is a nice person, because he yells at people for no reason.
- (obsolete) So that, in order that. [15th–17th c.]
- 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed by John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition II, section 3, member 2:
- Simon […] set the house on fire where he was born, because nobody should point at it.
Synonyms Edit
- (for the reason that): therefore, since, for, for that, forthy, for sake, forwhy (obsolete), as, inasmuch as, sith (obsolete), ∵ (mathematics symbol); see also Thesaurus:because
Derived terms Edit
Translations Edit
by or for the cause that; on this account that; for the reason that
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as known because; as inferred because; as determined because
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Preposition Edit
because
- (colloquial, Internet slang) On account of, because of. [from 20th c. or before]
- He rejected me because revenge, I guess.
- It doesn't work because reasons.
Derived terms Edit
References Edit
- Bingham, Caleb (1808), “Improprieties in Pronunciation, common among the people of New-England”, in The Child's Companion; Being a Conciſe Spelling-book […] [1], 12th edition, Boston: Manning & Loring, →OCLC, page 74.
- Glossa, volume 17 (1997), page 175: cf. Emonds 1976:175 on the analysis of Modern English because as a preposition introducing a clause
French Edit
Pronunciation Edit
Preposition Edit
because
- (colloquial) Synonym of à cause de (“because of”)
- La fenêtre était ouverte because la chaleur aoûtienne, si moite. ― The window was open because of the muggy August heat.