Cause and Effect Across Sentences

Learn to track cause, result, reason, and response even when they are split across multiple sentences.

Identify explicit and implicit cause-effect links in connected text.Recognize result markers such as そのため, そこで, and その結果.Use paragraph flow to connect a cause sentence to a later consequence.

Guided study

Cause and result are often separated

In reading passages, the cause does not always appear in the same sentence as the result. You may need to connect one sentence that explains a problem with a later sentence that gives the outcome or response.

朝から強い雨が降っていた。そのため、試合は中止になった。

Heavy rain had been falling since morning. As a result, the game was canceled.

An explicit result marker links the cause sentence to the outcome.

駅前の道路が工事中だ。そこで、バスは別の道を通ることになった。

The road in front of the station is under construction. Therefore, the bus will take a different route.

そこで introduces the response taken because of the situation.

Practice guides for this lesson

Use these hub pages to connect this lesson with related reading practice and grammar paths.

Cause and Effect Across Sentences

Cause and result are often separated

Practice guides for this lesson

N3 Japanese grammar lessons

Japanese grammar practice

Japanese grammar lessons