Resources
Due To
Making Due
By Evan Jenkins
One synonym for “due” is “attributable,” and that was the rough idea the writer had in mind in this sentence: “The last such blip occurred in 1990 due to fears that the Gulf War would cut oil supplies.” But we wouldn’t say the “blip occurred attributable to fears,” would we? The writer wanted “because of” or “as a result of.” With “due to,” some form of the verb “to be,” or verbs that function like it, is usually needed. “The power failure was due to a lightning strike” would be okay. So would, “Their exhaustion seemed due to the humidity rather than the heat.” Or, for fans of the polysyllabic, attributable to it.
CJR
