adjective
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acting as or being a cause
-
stating, involving, or implying a cause
the causal part of the argument
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philosophy (of a theory) explaining a phenomenon or analysing a concept in terms of some causal relation
Other Word Forms
- causally adverb
- noncausal adjective
- noncausally adverb
- supercausal adjective
- uncausal adjective
Etymology
Origin of causal
1520–30; < Latin causālis, equivalent to caus ( a ) cause + -ālis -al 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
According to the court filings, the company conducted internal studies that found causal links between social media use and mental health issues, such as increased social comparison, anxiety and depression.
From Salon
Microplastics are the current bete noire and rightly so, but we’re still in the dark about the causal calamity of a past era’s chemical polluting.
From Los Angeles Times
Years of research demonstrate that there is no causal link between vaccinations and autism or other neurodevelopmental disorders.
From Barron's
The rest of the page summarized some of the CDC’s own studies into autism and vaccine ingredients, none of which found any causal links between the two.
From Los Angeles Times
Ultimately, the huge numbers adduced to support this and other assertions throughout the book seem intended to shock rather than to support serious causal argumentation.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.