| because at the beginning of a sentence, or between two clauses because + subject + verb, etc. because of+ noun / pronoun ► note: do not use because of + subject + verb, etc. | We couldn’t travel because the weather was bad. Because of the bad weather we couldn't travel. NOT |
| since / as • = because, when the cause produces an obvious, logical or expected result • often used at the beginning of a sentence | Since/As we don't have much time, we'll have to hurry |
| due to / owing to/ in view of / on account of • = because of, in fairly formal contexts • at the beginning of a sentence, or between two clauses due to / owing to/ in view of / on account of + noun / pronoun due to / owing to / in view of / on account of the fact that + subject + verb, etc. ► note: Do not use due to / owing to / in view of / on account of + subject + verb, etc | The event has been cancelled due to /on account of lack of interest. The event has been cancelled in view of/ owing to the fact that not enough tickets have bean sold. NOT |
| so • to introduce the result of something • used between two clauses, after a comma, or with and | I wasn't listening, so I don't know what he said. I was tired and so I went to bed. |
| therefore • a introduce the result of something • more formal than so • used at Ihe beginning of a second sentence or between two clauses with and • at the beginning of a sentence often followed by a comma | We'd lost our tickets. Therefore, we couldn't see the show. We'd lost our tickets and therefore we couldn't see the show. |
| then • to respond to something with what the speaker believes to be the result of it • used at the beginning or end of the response ► note: Do not use then to link a cause and a result in & single sentence. | 'There are no buses at this time of night.’- Then we’ll have to get a taxi.' 'I was very rude to Jo.' - ‘You'd better apologize then. NOT |
| as a result used in the following patterns: as a result + subject + verb, etc. used at the beginning of a second sentence or between too clauses with and as a result of + -ing as a result of + noun / pronoun | The company was doing very badly. As a result, many people lost their jobs. As a result of losing his job, he became depressed. Many people lost their jobs as a result of the company's difficulties. |
| make + noun / pronoun + infinitive without to links a cause and a result make + it + adjective + for + noun / pronoun + infinitive with to often used with the adjectives easy, difficult, possible, impossible make + noun/pronoun + adjective used with many adjectives describing feelings, attitudes attitudes and characteristics | It was a sad story and it made me cry His attitude made it easy for me to relax. The noise made it impossible for me to concentrate. That failure made her even more determined to succeed. Her comments made me angry. |
| cause + noun/pronoun (+ infinitive) | What caused the problem? I'll health caused him to retire from his job. |
| result in + noun = have as a result | The bad weather resulted in an increase in fruit and vegetable prices |
| lead to + noun / pronoun = produce as a result | Smoking can lead to heart disease. What led to her financial difficulties? |
| (which) mean that + subject + verb, etc. • introduces a result that is certain • with which links a cause wiln its result | The fact that they are so rich means that they don't have to worry about paying their bills. They're extremely rich, which means that they don't have to worry about paying their bills. |