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khk
Joined: 11 Sep 2006
Posts: 12
Location: India
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 Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 7:26 pm Post subject: Due to, owing to, because and because of |
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Hi everyone!
Can someone please explain the differences in usage of due to, owing to, because and because of?
Thanks in advance.
KHK |
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2006
Joined: 27 Nov 2006
Posts: 610
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| Posted: Sat Feb 03, 2007 10:16 pm Post subject: |
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"due to", "owing to" and "because of" have simular grammar.
(Due to)(Owing to)(Because of) a previous bad experience, she was very reluctant to do it.
Because she had a previous bad experience, she was very reluctant to do it. |
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Mary W. Ng
Joined: 26 Jun 2006
Posts: 261
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| Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 3:02 pm Post subject: Re: Due to, owing to, because and because of |
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Strictly speaking, the expression due to is adjectival and should modify a noun preceding the verb be.
Correct: The accident was due to poor weather conditions. (due to is adjectival)
Incorrect: The games have been cancelled due to poor weather conditions.
Correct: The games have been cancelled because of poor weather conditions.
Correct: The games have been cancelled owing to poor weather conditions.
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Mary W. Ng
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pinenut
Joined: 16 Feb 2006
Posts: 165
Location: Illinois, U.S.A.
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| Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 7:13 pm Post subject: |
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As far as I know, 'due to' can be used as an adjective as well as a preposition.
Adjectival uses:
The team are due to fly to Italy next month.
His new book is due to be published next year.Prepositional uses
If an event is due to something, it happens or exists as a direct result of that thing.
The country's economic problems are largely due to the weakness of the recovery.
If the trip is a success, a lot of this will be due to Mr Green's efforts.
PHR-PREP: v-link PREP n
= because of
You can say due to to introduce the reason for something happening. Some speakers of English believe that it is not correct to use due to in this way.
Due to the large volume of letters he receives Dave regrets he is unable to answer queries personally.
Jobs could be lost in the defence industry due to political changes sweeping Europe.
PHR-PREP
= owing to
Quoted from Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English and Collins Cobuild Lexicon |
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Mary W. Ng
Joined: 26 Jun 2006
Posts: 261
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| Posted: Mon Feb 05, 2007 3:04 pm Post subject: Re: Due to, owing to, because and because of |
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| Quote: |
1. The team are due to fly to Italy next month.
2. His new book is due to be published next year.
3. The country's economic problems are largely due to the weakness of the recovery.
4. If the trip is a success, a lot of this will be due to Mr Green's efforts. |
In all these sentences, due is an adjective. Due means "expected" in 1 and 2 and "attributable" in 3 and 4.
| Quote: |
Due to the large volume of letters he receives Dave regrets he is unable to answer queries personally.
Jobs could be lost in the defence industry due to political changes sweeping Europe. |
Here due to functions as a preposition phrase meaning "because of", the usage of which is frowned on by strict grammarians. The careful writer will do well to avoid such usage, until such time when it is thoroughly established in the language. Is now the time? I'm not sure.
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Mary W. Ng
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pinenut
Joined: 16 Feb 2006
Posts: 165
Location: Illinois, U.S.A.
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| Posted: Mon Feb 05, 2007 8:36 pm Post subject: Re: Due to, owing to, because and because of |
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| Mary W. Ng wrote: |
| Quote: |
1. The team are due to fly to Italy next month.
2. His new book is due to be published next year.
3. The country's economic problems are largely due to the weakness of the recovery.
4. If the trip is a success, a lot of this will be due to Mr Green's efforts. |
In all these sentences, due is an adjective. Due means "expected" in 1 and 2 and "attributable" in 3 and 4.
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So, you think you know more than the authors of Collins Cobuild Lexicon, who call 'due to' in 3. and 4. prepositions.
They also say it means the same as 'because of'. |
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Mary W. Ng
Joined: 26 Jun 2006
Posts: 261
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| Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 12:38 pm Post subject: Re: Due to, owing to, because and because of |
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So, you think you know more than the authors of Collins Cobuild Lexicon, who call 'due to' in 3. and 4. prepositions.
They also say it means the same as 'because of'. |
Hi pinenut,
Disagreeing with what the authors of Collins Cobuild Lexicon say doesn't mean that I think I know more than they do. I merely pointed out that "due" is an adjective, which it is, according to more than one word usage book.
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Mary W. Ng
Helping students learn grammar
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khk
Joined: 11 Sep 2006
Posts: 12
Location: India
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| Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 5:02 pm Post subject: |
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Hi! I am here to resume the question in different way. Could someone answer with little more explanation whether we can use all in the following sentence?
The game was cancelled due to / because of / owing to rain.
Tanks in advance,
KHK |
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Mary W. Ng
Joined: 26 Jun 2006
Posts: 261
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| Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 5:24 pm Post subject: Re: Due to, owing to, because and because of |
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| Quote: |
| Could someone answer with little more explanation whether we can use all in the following sentence? The game was cancelled due to / because of / owing to rain. |
Whether "due to" is a compound preposition is still open to dispute; the careful writer would avoid it altogether and use either "because of" or "owing to" instead.
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Mary W. Ng
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2006
Joined: 27 Nov 2006
Posts: 610
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| Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 8:36 pm Post subject: |
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khk
Regarding your last question, I think that native speakers would find all 3 acceptable. "because of" is the most commonly used, followed by "due to" and then "owing to". I would recommend that you use "because of", especially if you want people who are not native English speakers to more easily understand your meaning. |
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