Talking a bou t cause and effect

D i f f e r e n t 'cause' verb s

topic verb examples

negative events, cause The st or m caused chaos / havoc / a lot of d a ma ge .
situations and Her remarks caused a l a r m / c on c e r n .
feelings Her son's behaviour caused h e r g r e a t a nx ie t y / a lot of
e mb a r r a s s m e n t .
positive and bring about The discovery of X-rays b r o ug h t a b o u t a rev ol uti o n /
negative changes t r a n s f o r m a t i o n in medical science.
The events brou gh t about t h e downfall/collapse of the government
positive and create His bo ok helped c r e a t e awa re ness of inner-city poverty.
negative situations Your presence on the commit tee is c re at in g p r o b le m s fo r all of us.
and feelings
sudden, often spark off The announcement sparked off ri ot s/d emons t ra t ion s in the cities.
negative, events His wife's absence sparke d off r u m o u r s in the media.
reactions f r o m attract His book has a t t r a c t e d a lot of criti cism/ i nteres t.
people The charity appeal a t t r a c t e d s u p p or t f ro m a wide range of people.
results and effects produce My comments pro d uce d t h e opp osi te effect to what 1 intended.
His research has not yet p r odu ce d any results, but we must wait.

Causes an d effects

The i m m e d i a t e cause of the problem was an
oil leak.
The government hopes to r ed uc e / mi ni mi s e th e
i m p a c t of the new taxes.
The new measures had an u ne x pe c t ed /
un forese e n o u t c o m e .
The positive/beneficial effects of the changes
were soon apparent.
The crisis was the d ire ct/in evi tabl e res ult of bad
economic planning.
The und erl yi ng cause of the problem was a lack
of funds over many years.
The support she got fro m the Prime Minister
strengthened/increased the i mp ac t of her report
The new tax led to the pre dict abl e/ i nev itabl e
o u t c o m e that many people became poorer.
The ne gati ve/adverse effects of the changes
wer e not noticed immediately.
On e i ndi rec t/ unfores een result of the new laws
has been a rise in unemployment.

C o m m o n expressions f o r everyday events

The book caused an uproar in the United States, [made a lot of peopl e complain angrily]
If you make him angry, you'll have to suffer the consequences.
The accident had a huge effect on her life.
Latino singers have had a major impact on po p music this year.
Remember that it makes/creates a bad impression if you're late.
The drug companies have a lot of influence on doctors.
Thei r love affair caused a sensation.

To affect means *to have an influence on someone/something, or to cause them to

change*. (Her death affecte d everyone deeply.) To effect means 't o achieve something
WARNING
/ make something happen'. (We are trying to effect a change in the way people think
about their diet.) The noun effect(s) refers to the result(s) of something. (His stressful
life has had an effect on his health.)

I 10 English Collocations in Use

 Exercises

53 . 1 C omplet e each sentence wit h a verb from A. Use each verb once only.
1 The film has a lot of criticism, bot h positive an d negative.
2 Th e extra wor k Olga's had to do has her a lot of stress.
3 T h e ex periment didn 't the results we 'd expected.
4 David Line wrote an excellent article on the factors that the
collapse of the Soviet Union .
5 Th e rise in the price of fuel has a series of protests.
53.2 Choos e the correct collocation.

I've j u s t b e e n r e a d i n g t h e ver y in t e r e s t i n g b i o g r a p h y o f
Rhod a Legge, an ea rl y star of sile nt fi lms . She isn't g e n e r al l y
w e l l - k n o w n n o w b u t she caused a(n) (1) impression I
sensation I outcome in t h e 1920s w h e n she h a d an a f f a ir
w i t h a m i n o r m e m b e r o f a E u ro pe a n roya l f a m ily . This t u r n e d
o u t to ha ve a (2) major I principal I chief i m p a c t on he r
career. At firs t she was very distressed by t h e (3) effect I
influence I uproar it caused in t h e press. Howeve r, u lt i m a t e ly ,
she d i d n o t suffe r t h e n eg a t i ve (4) results I consequences J
outcomes she i n it ia ll y f e a r e d . O n t h e cont rary, t h e a f f a i r h a d
an (5) unpredicted I unknown I unexpected o u t c o m e . Th e
(6) good I advantageous I positive effe cts of t h e a ff ai r soo n
b e g a n to m a k e the mselves f e l t a s she b e g a n t o b e o f f e r e d all
sorts of i n t e r e st i n g n e w roles . T h e a f f ai r (7) affected I
effected I infected t h e w a y p e o p l e t h o u g h t a b o u t her. The
re la ti on s hi p d i d n o t last m o r e t h a n a f e w m o n t h s b u t it
(8) produced I attracted I caused a se ns atio n t h a t (9) had I
did I got a h u g e i m p a c t on her m o vi e career.

53.3 Choos e an ending from the b ox to complete each sentence below.

some changes in the way the college is structured . cause of the fire was.
the development of personality very deeply. the impact of the new measures.
the impact of the tragedy on our children. results which no one could have predicted.
result of the huge tax rises. a good impression at a job interview.
a considerable influence on his choice of career. causes of crime.

1 T h e enquiry aims to establish wh a t the immediate

2 Henry's gr an dmot h e r had
3 Th e changes had some unforeseen
4 Criticising your previous boss doesn't create
5 We must do all we can to minimise
6 W h a t happen s in c hildhood affects
7 Ma n a ge me n t is trying to effect
8 T he TV coverage they have received has strengthened
9 The gove rnme nt should do something ab ou t the underlying
10 Th e riots were an inevitable

i
Look up the word s influence, effect, impact and consequence in a goo d learner's dictionary. Make a
note of any othe r interesting collocations that you find.

English Collocations in Use I I I