Many words or phrases can be used to set up an explanation. The most common and really REALLY overused one is “because”. Please encourage your child to stop using that word in his school compositions if he wants to score a little bit higher.
Here are 12 alternatives to replace “because” and their merits.
1. AS
“As” is a direct synonym for “because” (for example, “He decided not to go see the movie, as he found out his nemesis was going as well”), but it’s not exactly much better.
2. AS A RESULT OF
This phrase is a substitute for “because of”, not because, as in “As a result of his insatiable appetite, all the dishes on the table were wiped clean within seconds.”
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 to the supermarket, could you help me buy 5 watermelons?”
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. FOR
This substitute for “because” is reserved for poetic usage, as in “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
7. NOW THAT
This phrase informally connotes cause and effect, as in “Now that Mrs Tan here, we can submit our homework.”
8. 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.”
9. SEEING THAT
This phrase is identical to “considering that.”
10. SINCE
“Since” primarily refers to elapsed time, as in “Since it had rained, we didn’t need to water the garden.”
11. THANKS TO
This equivalent of “because of,” despite the wording, can apply to either a positive or a negative outcome; “Thanks to your involvment, the teacher is now watching our every move” demonstrates the latter sense.
12. THROUGH
Through is a preposition; it takes the place of “because of,” as in “Through the efforts of the teachers, all the students did well in the final year exams.”
For over 15 years, Augustine’s English Classes has helped hundreds of students fall in love with the subject and excelling in school exams. If you are interested to know how our classes work, or what our secret winning formula is, do feel free to drop us a message or give us a call.
