DictionaryAI

because

bi-KAWZ/bɪˈkɔz/UKbi-KOZ/bɪˈkɒz/

6 meanings of because

Practice

  1. 1
    the causeconjunction
    For the reason that; introduces the cause of something, or the reason for believing it.

    She smiled because she knew the answer.

    The match was stopped because the pitch was flooded.

    UsageBecause + subject and verb: because she knew the answer. Before a noun, use because of.

    Similarsince, as

  2. 2
    on account ofadverb
    Used with 'of' before a noun to mean on account of.

    School was closed because of the storm.

    She succeeded because of hard work.

    UsageUse before a noun or pronoun: because of the rain (not incorrect: because the rain).

    Note

    Dropping the of before a bare noun gives the playful online construction ("because reasons").

  3. 3
    refusing a reasoninterjection
    Standing alone as the whole answer to a 'why' question, refusing a real reason; short for 'because I said so'.

    "Why is the sky blue, Dad?" "Because."

    "Why not?" "Because, that's why."

    UsageInformal. Often used in the set phrases Just because or Because, that's why.

    Note

    Rhetoricians call this an anapodoton: a sentence broken off after its opening, with the rest left for the listener to supply. Here the missing part is "I said so." The refusal is the point, because the speaker claims the right not to explain. Tacking on "that's why" only hardens the refusal; it supplies no reason.

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

    • The standalone refusal 'Because' is described as an anapodoton. en.wiktionary.org
    • An anapodoton leaves a thought unfinished, with the completion understood. en.wikipedia.org
    • The understood completion in this interpretation is 'I said so.' en.wiktionary.org

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    prepositioncolloquial
    Used directly before a noun, adjective, or interjection, without 'of', to give a brisk or ironic explanation.

    We skipped the meeting because Friday.

    He bought another guitar because music.

    UsageFor formal writing, use because of followed by a noun phrase, or because followed by a full clause.

    Note

    Writers noticed this construction quickly. In 2013 Megan Garber's headline announced "English Has a New Preposition, Because Internet." It drops both of and the full clause, and the gap is the joke: "because reasons" implies the reasons are too obvious, or too flimsy, to spell out.

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

    • Megan Garber published an article titled 'English Has a New Preposition, Because Internet' in 2013. theatlantic.com
  2. 5
    adverbobsolete
    For the reason that; used with an extra 'that' to introduce a cause, as in 'because that he rested'.
    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.
    1611, The Holy Bible, King James Version
    Note

    The extra that is pure ballast. Drop it and the sentence means exactly the same, which is why later English let it go. The 1611 Bible has God blessing the seventh day "because that in it he had rested", and to modern ears the phrase tends to sound scriptural. In present-day writing it reads as deliberate pastiche, and the plain conjunction does the job alone.

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

    • The King James Bible was published in 1611. archive.org
    • Genesis describes God blessing the seventh day and contains the exact quoted words. en.wikisource.org
  3. 6
    conjunctionobsolete
    So that; in order that, expressing purpose rather than cause.
    Note

    Here because looks forward rather than back: it names an aim, not a reason. Robert Burton uses it this way in The Anatomy of Melancholy, when Simon burns his birthplace "because nobody should point at it", so that nobody would. The should in the clause is the giveaway. Modern English keeps the ordinary causal meaning for reasons and hands purpose to so that, which is why the older use can mislead a reader of early prose.

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

    • Robert Burton wrote The Anatomy of Melancholy. gutenberg.org
    • Burton recounts Simon setting fire to the house where he was born, using because to express his purpose. gutenberg.org
    • The quoted wording with nobody is attested as an example of because meaning so that or in order that. en.wiktionary.org

Practice

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Origin

Speakers of Middle English put bi ("by") together with cause to make bi cause, copying how Old French used par cause.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

  • Middle English bi cause was formed from bi, meaning “by”, and cause. en.wiktionary.org
  • The Middle English formation was modelled on Old French par cause. en.wiktionary.org