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say it: kahz
cause is a noun and verb meaning "events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something". It is pronounced /ˈkɑz/ — kahz. It carries 7 recorded senses.
events that provide the generative force that is the origin of something
“they are trying to determine the cause of the crash”
a justification for something existing or happening
“he had no cause to complain”
“they had good reason to rejoice”
a series of actions advancing a principle or tending toward a particular end
“he supported populist campaigns”
“they worked in the cause of world peace”
“the team was ready for a drive toward the pennant”
“the movement to end slavery”
“contributed to the war effort”
any entity that produces an effect or is responsible for events or results
a comprehensive term for any proceeding in a court of law whereby an individual seeks a legal remedy
“the family brought suit against the landlord”
law
Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.
Definitions, synonyms and semantic relations for cause come from Princeton University’s WordNet. The pronunciation comes from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. Commonness is measured against a corpus of everyday English. Full sources and licences.