Connectors of cause: porque, como, ya que

Spanish joins a reason, a result and an aim with three families of connectors, and each family has its own mood:

• No salimos porque llovía. - We didn't go out because it was raining.
• Llovía, así que no salimos. - It was raining, so we didn't go out.
• Te llamo para que me ayudes. - I'm ringing you so that you help me.

Connectors at a glance

The whole page on one screen. Each family keeps its own box colour all the way down.

Cause and result state facts, so the verb after them is indicative (de ahí que, below, is the one exception). Purpose points at something that has not happened yet, so para que takes the subjunctive: para que vengas, never "para que vienes".

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1. 1Come un helado porque hace sol.
2. 2Llueve, así que lleva paraguas.
3. 3Hace frío, por eso lleva bufanda.

Come un helado porque hace sol: he is eating an ice cream because it is sunny. Llueve, así que lleva paraguas: it is raining, so she has an umbrella. Hace frío, por eso lleva bufanda: it is cold, which is why she is wearing a scarf.

Cause: porque, como, ya que

All of them take the indicative when they give the real reason. What differs is where they sit:

• No vamos, ya que no hay coche. - We're not going, since there's no car.
• Puesto que no hay tiempo, empezamos. - Given that there's no time, we'll start.

Ya que, puesto que and dado que sound more careful than porque, and dado que is mostly written.

The one with a rule is como. As "because" it must open the sentence, with the reason first. Put the reason second and you need porque:

• Como llovía, no salimos. - As it was raining, we didn't go out.
• No salimos porque llovía. - We didn't go out because it was raining.

After the main clause, como reads as "how" or "like", so "no salimos como llovía" is not standard Spanish.

One twist: a denied reason, no porque, takes the subjunctive, because you are saying it is not the cause:

• Lo hago, pero no porque me guste. - I do it, but not because I like it.

Because of: por, a causa de, gracias a

Porque needs a whole clause with a verb. Before a noun, "because of" is por, a causa de or debido a:

Gracias a is for a cause you are glad of. Por also takes an infinitive, for what someone did:

• Lo despidieron por llegar tarde. - They sacked him for arriving late.