Emily Dickinson Lexicon

CAUSE, n. [s. as z. Fr. cause; Sp. Port. and It. causa; L. causa, from the Celtic; Welch acaws, effecting power, allied to cais, effort, ceisiaw, to seek or go after, to attempt; Arm. caus or cos. The primary sense is to urge, press, impel, like sequor, whence suit; hence, to accuse, to attack or follow with a charge. The root of this word coincides with that of castle, cast, &c., which express a driving. A cause is that which moves, excites or impels to action or effect; in law, a pressing for a claim. See Question. Cause, sake and thing have the like radical sense.]

1. A suit or action in court; any legal process which a party institutes to obtain his demand, or by which he seeks his right or his supposed right. This is a legal, scriptural and popular use of the word, coinciding nearly with case from cado, and action from ago, to urge or drive. The cause of both parties shall come before the judges. – Ex. xxii.
2. That which produces an effect; that which impels into existence, or by its agency or operation produces what did not before exist; that by virtue of which any thing is done; that from which any thing proceeds, and without which it would not exist. Cause is a substance exerting its power into act, to make a thing begin to be. – Locke.
3. The reason or motive that urges, moves, or impels the mind to act or decide. For this cause have I raised up Pharaoh. – Ex. ix. And David said, is there not a cause? – 1 Sam. xvii.
4. Sake; account. I did it not for his cause that had done the wrong. – 2 Cor. vii. [See Sake.]
5. That which a party or nation pursues; or rather pursuit, prosecution of an object. We say, Bible Societies are engaged in a noble cause. [See the first definition.] Hence the word cause is used to denote that which a person or thing favors; that to which the efforts of an intelligent being are directed; as, to promote religion is to advance the cause of God. So we say, the cause of truth or of justice. In all its applications, cause retains something of its original meaning, struggle, impelling force, contest, effort to obtain or to effect something.
6. Without cause, without good reason; without a reason or motive to justify the act. They hate me without cause. – Ps. xxxv. lxix.