Mawson, C.O.S., ed. (1870–1938). Roget’s International Thesaurus. 1922.
Class I. Words Expressing Abstract RelationsSection VIII. Causation
1. Constancy of Sequence in Events
153. [Constant Antecedent.] Cause.
SPRING, fountain, well, font; fountainhead, springhead, reservoir, headspring, wellspring, wellhead; fons et origo [L.], genesis; descent (paternity) [See Paternity]; remote cause; influence.
PIVOT, hinge, turning point, lever; key; heart, nucleus, hub, focus; proximate cause, causa causans [L.]; last straw that breaks the camel’s back.
REASON, reason why; ground; why and wherefore [colloq.], rationale, occasion, derivation; final cause (intention) [See Intention]; les dessous des cartes [F.]; under-currents.
RUDIMENT, egg, germ, embryo, fetus or fœtus, bud, root, radix, radical, radication [rare], etymon, nucleus, seed, stem, stock, stirps, trunk, taproot, gemma, gemmule, radicle, semen, sperm.
NEST, cradle, nursery, womb, nidus, birthplace, breeding-place, hotbed.;
CAUSALITY, causation; origination; causative; production [See Production].
PROCURE, induce, draw down, open the door to, superinduce, evoke, entail, operate; elicit, provoke.
CONTRIBUTE; conduce to &c. (tend to) [See Tendency]; have a hand in; have a finger in the pie [colloq.]; determine, decide, turn the scale, have the deciding vote, have the final word; have a common origin; derive its origin (effect) [See Effect].