Using the word as instead of because

Using causal «as» is not poor grammar. Choosing to use it when it unintentionally creates an ambiguity is poor style (your readers/listeners will eventually figure out what you mean to say, so you’ve merely wasted a little of their time, but their time isn’t as important as your right to express yourself in any manner you choose [irony alert]). If you want to be ambiguous and confuse your readers and listeners, however, then you should by all means be as ambiguous as possible. Scads of native speakers will support that position by saying that «Everybody does it» (mendacious) or «That’s what I say, so it must be right» (holier-than-thou) or «What makes you think there’s a problem with this?» (dogmatic) or «I don’t have a problem with it, so there’s no problem with it» (solipsistic). It’s a personal preference and, as Barrie England points out, American speakers and writers tend to use it less than British speakers and writers do. That doesn’t influence my preference one iota, jot, or tittle. George Eliot (British), Nathanael West (American), Neil Gaiman (British), and Yann Martel (Canadian) are my current favorite writers and users of English.

As Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage points out, according to Harry Shaw (Errors in English. 2d ed. NY: Barnes & Noble, 1970), «as» is one of the most overworked words in the English language. The very long entry gives all kinds of examples of how the word has been used through the ages. Most of the time, but not always, there’s no problem with understanding what it means in context.

I always replace causal «as» (and causal «since«) with «because«, or else I rewrite the sentence. That’s because I believe that there should not be ambiguity in biomedical or other technical writing. It isn’t poetry or detective fiction (well, sometimes it’s criminal fiction). Clarity, brevity, and plain-style are what I strive for in formal written prose. Ambiguity and other types of unclear writing convey a «Gee, Officer Krupke. Krup you!» attitude to the reader/listener. That’s just my personal bias, of course, but no journal copy-editor, editor-in-chief, or reviewer anywhere in the world has ever changed «because» back to «as» or «since» in the thousands of manuscripts that I’ve revised. For what that’s worth.

BTW, in both your example sentences, I’d say «I can’t go with you because I’m too busy» and «I can’t come with you because our auras don’t match». And you’re right, there is and has long been an absurd and pedantic debate about using as. Don’t bother to get involved. Just choose your poison and drink it.

As is used to mean because, but it is also used when two events happen at the same time. In “I must stop now as I have to go out.” it means because, but in “She watched him as the train passed close to his house.” it doesn’t mean because. As for the sentences you used as examples, both are correct.

What other word can I use instead of in?

other words for in other words

• especially.
• particularly.
• specially.
• specifically.
• videlicet.
• expressly.
• id est.
• scilicet.

What can I use instead of this shows?

What is another word for this shows?

What can I say instead of a quote?

other words for quote

• cite.
• name.
• recall.
• attest.
• excerpt.
• parrot.
• recite.
• reference.

What is an ethical person called?

For someone who is honest and follows good moral standards, use the adjective ethical. Ethical comes from the Greek ethos “moral character” and describes a person or behavior as right in the moral sense – truthful, fair, and honest.

What is a antonym for ethical?

Antonyms: unethical, wrong. Synonyms: honorable, honourable, honest, respectable, good, estimable.

What does ethical mean in simple terms?

pertaining to or dealing with morals or the principles of morality; pertaining to right and wrong in conduct. being in accordance with the rules or standards for right conduct or practice, especially the standards of a profession: It was not considered ethical for physicians to advertise.

What are the 2 types of ethics?

Types of ethics

• Supernaturalism.
• Subjectivism.
• Consequentialism.
• Intuitionism.
• Emotivism.
• Duty-based ethics.
• Virtue ethics.
• Situation ethics.

Many words or phrases can be used to set up an explanation. The most common is because (or “because of”), but others have their uses. Here are alternatives and a discussion of their uses and their merits.

1. As: As is a direct synonym for because (for example, “He opted not to go see the movie, as it had gotten poor reviews”), but it’s inferior.

2. As a result of: This phrase is a substitute for “because of,” not because, as in “As a result of his intervention, the case was reopened and they were ultimately exonerated.”

3. As long as: This informal equivalent of because is used to express the thought that given that one thing is occurring or will occur or is true, another is possible, in such statements as “As long as you’re going, could you pick some things up for me?”

4. Being as (or being as how or being that): This phrase has the same sense — and the same formality — as “as long as.”

5. Considering that: This phrase is essentially identical in meaning to “as long as” and “being as” and its variants.

6. Due to: Like “as a result of,” “due to” is a preposition, rather than a conjunction like because, and is used in place not of because alone but instead of “because of.” It applies specifically to an explanation of why something occurred or will or will not occur, as in “Due to the large number of applications, we cannot respond individually to each applicant.”

7. For: This substitute for because is reserved for poetic usage, as in “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

8. Inasmuch as: This phrase is a very formal equivalent of because, as in “Inasmuch as his account has been discredited, I wouldn’t believe anything else he says.”

9. In view of the fact that: This phrase is identical in sense to “inasmuch as.”

10. Now that: This phrase informally connotes cause and effect, as in “Now that you’re here, we can proceed.”

11. Out of: This phrase applies to explanations of emotion or feeling — for example, “She asked out of compassion” or “Out of spite, I refrained from passing the message along.”

12. Owing to: This phrase is equivalent to “due to”; the two choices are more formal than “because of.”

13. Seeing that: This phrase is identical to “considering that.”

14. Since: This alternative to because is informal and is considered inferior because since primarily refers to elapsed time and the usage might be confused, as in “Since it had rained, we didn’t need to water the garden”; the reader might not realize until reading the second half of the sentence that the sense is causal rather than temporal.

15. Thanks to: This equivalent of “because of,” despite the wording, can apply to either a positive or a negative outcome; “Thanks to your meddling, we’re receiving much unwanted attention” demonstrates the latter sense.

16. Through: Through is a preposition; it takes the place of “because of,” as in “Through the efforts of these charities, the city’s homeless services have been reinstated.”