SC Shortie: Due to VS Because of | GMAT | Executive Assessment

📚 In this shortie, we're delving into a nuanced distinction between 'because of' and 'due to' in Sentence Correction questions.

While native speakers may intuitively differentiate between these expressions, understanding their grammatical nuances is crucial for success on the GMAT.

We begin by analyzing a GMAT task to illustrate the significance of this difference and highlight the role of the split in selecting the correct answer.

'Due to' is used when it can be replaced with 'caused by' in a sentence and still maintain its meaning. Conversely, 'because of' is used in other cases.

Consider these examples:
🔹 "The football match was cancelled 'due to'/'because of' rain."
🔹 "The cancellation of the game was 'due to'/'because of' rain."

In the second sentence, "The cancellation of the game was caused by bad weather" makes sense, indicating that 'due to' is appropriate. However, "The football match was cancelled caused by bad weather" sounds awkward, necessitating the use of 'because of' in the first sentence.

To aid decision-making, we provide a statistical hint: 'because of' is typically the correct choice in 90% of cases. When uncertain, opting for 'because of' increases the likelihood of selecting the correct answer.

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