# Because: porque, como, ya que, pues

> id: grammar.conjunctions.cause · category: grammar · depth: standard · levels: B1 · review: internally_reviewed

**Summary.** Porque follows the result (no fui porque llovía); como leads with the cause (como llovía, no fui); ya que / puesto que / dado que are formal 'since'.

Spanish has several ways to say 'because/since', and position distinguishes the two everyday ones. Porque ('because') follows the result clause: no fui porque llovía, cerramos temprano porque era feriado. Como ('since/as') leads with the cause, at the start of the sentence: como llovía, no fui.

This positional split is strict: *porque llovía, no fui sounds wrong — front the cause with como, or put porque after the result. The more formal 'since' connectors are ya que, puesto que, dado que: ya que estás aquí, ayudame.

For a same-subject cause you can compress with por + infinitive: lo multaron por estacionar mal ('they fined him for parking badly'). Watch the four spellings: porque ('because'), ¿por qué? ('why?'), el porqué (the noun 'the reason'), and the rare por que ('for which').

## Examples
- Como no contestaste, vine directo. — Since you didn't answer, I came straight over.
- Cerramos temprano porque era feriado. — We closed early because it was a holiday.
- Como no contestabas, te escribí; te llamo porque es urgente. — Since you weren't answering, I texted you; I'm calling because it's urgent.

Related: grammar.conjunctions.subordinating-overview, grammar.prepositions.por-uses

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