causative
- 01 C1 Advanced
adj.acting as the reason why something happens.
adj.acting as a cause or contributing to the production of an effect. Non-gradable in its scientific and logical application.
Simple“Smoking is a causative factor in many different types of lung disease.”
In context“Epidemiologists identified the contaminated water supply as the primary causative agent in the recent outbreak of illness.”
UsageUsually placed before the noun it modifies.
Teacher's tipIn general English, 'causal' is more common; 'causative' is preferred in medical or scientific contexts.
SynonymscausaldeterminativeAntonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
adj.describing a verb or sentence that shows someone making someone else do an action.
adj.expressing a cause or causation, specifically regarding a grammatical construction where an agent causes a patient to perform an action.
Simple“In the sentence 'I had the mechanic fix my car,' the verb 'had' is causative.”
In context“The professor explained how causative verbs like 'make,' 'let,' and 'have' function differently regarding the use of the infinitive.”
UsageUsed to describe verbs, clauses, or specific linguistic structures.
Teacher's tipThis is a core concept for B2-C1 learners when studying structures like 'have something done' or 'make someone do something'.
- 03 C2 Proficiency
n.a word or form that expresses the idea of causing an action.
n.a linguistic form, such as a verb or affix, that indicates an agent is causing a subject to act or change state.
Simple“The teacher asked the students to identify the causative in each sentence.”
In context“In some languages, the causative is formed by adding a specific suffix to the root of the verb.”
UsageA countable noun in linguistic analysis.
Teacher's tipRarely used by students; primarily found in grammar books and linguistic research.
From French causatif, itself from Latin causātīvus ("causative, pertaining to a lawsuit, accusative"), from causa ("cause").
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.