Meaning & use
causal relationship
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Meanings
nouncountable
A connection in which one event or condition directly causes another to happen.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a causal relationship' or 'causal relationships'.
Patterns
- a causal relationship between something and something
- establish a causal relationship
- a causal relationship with something
The study found a causal relationship between smoking and lung cancer.
Scientists need strong evidence before they claim a causal relationship.
There is no proven causal relationship between the new drug and the reported side effects.
nouncountabletechnical
In statistics, a link where a change in one variable produces a change in another.
Grammar: Often used with 'between' to name the two variables.
Patterns
- a causal relationship between variables
- infer a causal relationship
- test for a causal relationship
The data show a correlation, but we cannot infer a causal relationship.
Economists use natural experiments to test for causal relationships.
A causal relationship was established after controlling for other factors.
Word forms
| plural | causal relationships |
|---|
Common combinations
- a causal relationship between
- Researchers studied the causal relationship between diet and heart disease.
- establish a causal relationship
- It is hard to establish a causal relationship without a controlled trial.
- a direct causal relationship
- There is a direct causal relationship between the two events.
- no causal relationship
- The report concluded that there was no causal relationship.
Synonyms and how they differ
- causation
- More formal and abstract; it refers to the process of causing, while 'causal relationship' names the link itself.
- cause-and-effect relationship
- A longer everyday phrase with the same meaning; 'causal relationship' is more academic.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: causal relationship or correlation?
causal relationship vs correlation
A correlation means two things change together, but it does not prove that one causes the other. A causal relationship means one thing actually makes the other happen.
Practice
The study found a causal relationship ___ air pollution and asthma in children.
Choose one answer.
'Between' is used to link two specific things in a causal relationship: 'a causal relationship between X and Y'. 'Among' is used for more than two things, and 'with' or 'of' do not fit this pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “causal relationship”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.