Expressing Cause in English (EFL/ESL English speaking lessons)

Expressing cause in English

What is cause?

Expressing Cause – A cause (a reason) is the person or the thing that makes something happen. We have the cause and the result. Any result has a cause. In English, there are some expressions that we can use to express both cause and effect. In this lesson, you will learn some of them. The expressions will be presented in categories according to their rules.

1. Linking words used to express cause: Category one

Because
Since
As

/Because, as and since/ come either in the middle of the sentence or at the beginning. They are followed by sentences.

Examples:

She didn’t go to school since she was sick.
Since she was sick, she didn’t go to school.
She didn’t get a good grade because she didn’t study hard.
Because she didn’t study hard, she didn’t get a good grade.
She doesn’t work as she has no diplomas.
As she has no diplomas, she doesn’t work.

2. Linking words used to express cause: Category two

Owing to
Because of

/Owing to and because of/ come either at the beginning or in the middle of the sentence. They are followed by either a noun or a verb +ing.

Examples:

She failed the test owing to being lazy.
Owing to laziness, she failed the test.
Because of sickness, she didn’t attend the meeting.
She didn’t attend the meeting because of being sick.

3. Linking words used to express cause: Category three

Due to
Thanks to

/Due to and thanks to/ also come either at the beginning or in the middle of the sentence. They are followed by either a noun or a verb +ing. They are different from one another. /Thanks to/ is used to express positive things and /due to/ is used to express negative things.