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Whether you are explaining traffic delays or praising new city infrastructure, attributing cause is a key part of everyday conversation. In Arabic, you can express cause using two common prepositional phrases, depending on whether the outcome is neutral/negative or positive.

### Stating Causes with بسبب

To say "because of" or "due to," use the phrase بسبب. This is typically used for neutral facts or negative outcomes, like traffic and closures. 

Grammatically, بسبب acts as the first word of an Idafa (genitive construct). The noun that immediately follows it is the second part of the Idafa, meaning it will take the genitive case (مجرور).

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### Giving Credit with بفضل

When an outcome is positive and you want to give credit, use بفضل (thanks to). Just like the previous phrase, بفضل forms an Idafa with the noun that comes after it.

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### Building "Chain" Idafas

In discussions about urban planning or commuting, the cause is rarely a single word. You will often need to link multiple concepts, such as "the maintenance of the bridge" or "the planning of the project."

In these situations, بسبب and بفضل simply become the first link in a multiple-word "chain" Idafa. Notice in the following example how both phrases can be used together to contrast blame and credit:

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Expressing cause (بسبب / بفضل)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

interrogative

noun

numeral

particle

prefix

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

The definite article and locatives (الـ)

Basic noun gender (ة)

Sun and moon letters

Singular subject pronouns (أنا، أنت، هو، هي)

Indefinite nouns and nominal sentences (ـٌ)

Demonstrative pronouns for 'this' (هذا / هذه)

Separate prepositions (في، من، إلى، على)

Attributive adjectives

Predicative adjectives

Yes/No questions (هل، أ)

Basic questions (من، ما، أين)

Singular possessive pronouns (ـي، ـك، ـه، ـها)

Plural subject pronouns (نحن، أنتم، هم)

Plural possessive pronouns (ـنا، ـكم، ـهم)

Noun possession

Attached prepositions (بـ، لـ، كـ)

Pronouns with prepositions

Having and possessing (عند، لـ، مع)

Regular plural nouns (ـون، ـين، ـات)

Broken plurals

Dual nouns (ـان / ـين)

Plural and distant demonstratives (هؤلاء، ذلك، تلك)

Non-human plural agreement

Present tense singular verbs

Verbal sentences (VSO)

Present tense plural verbs

Topicalized sentences (SVO)

The indefinite accusative case (ـاً)

Verb object pronouns (-ني، -ك، -ه)

Present tense negation (لا)

Question words with verbs (متى، كيف...)

Adverbs of time and place

The future tense (سـ / سوف)

Intentions and desires (أن)

Negating states and possession (ليس)

Past tense singular suffixes

Past tense plural suffixes

Negating past events (ما)

Singular commands

Numbers 1 to 10

Number agreement for 1 and 2 (واحد، اثنان)

Asking how many (كم)

Numbers 3 to 10 (ثلاثة إلى عشرة)

Ordinal numbers 1 to 10 (الأول، الثاني)

Basic conjunctions (فـ، أو، لكن)

Ordering at a café (واحد، اثنان)

Food and drink with conjunctions (و، ف، أو، لكن)

There is and there are (هناك / ليس هناك)

Direct address (يا)

Giving reasons (لأنّ)

Relative pronouns (الذي / التي)

Quantifiers (كل / بعض)

The past tense of 'to be' (كان)

Past possession

Numbers 11 to 19 and tens to 80

Telling time (الساعة)

This book vs this is a book (هذا الكتاب، هذا كتاب)

Greetings (مرحبا، السلام عليكم)

How are you? and goodbye (كيف حالك، مع السلامة)

Nationalities (مصري، مصرية)

Roots and patterns (كتب، كتاب، مكتب)

Politeness (من فضلك، آسف)

Complex possession chains

Colors and traits (أفعل / فعلاء)

Plural colors and traits (فُعْل)

Comparative adjectives (أفعل من)

Superlative adjectives (أفعل)

Adverbs of manner (ـاً)

The nominative case (ـُ)

The genitive case (ـِ)

The accusative case (ـَ)

Dual noun cases (ـان / ـين)

Masculine plurals and 'the best of' (أفضل النجارين)

Emphasizing sentences (إنّ)

Connecting clauses (أنّ)

Reporting speech (قال إنّ)

Expressing contrast (لكنّ)

Comparison and probability (كأنّ, لعلّ)

Distant plural pointing (أولئك)

Plural relative pronouns (الذين, اللواتي)

Past habits (كان + present)

Ongoing actions (ما زال)

Masculine plurals online (مبرمجون، مؤثرون)

Perfective past (قد)

Probability (قد)

The subjunctive mood (أن)

Question	Answer
maintenance	صيانةsiyâna
The street is crowded due to the repair of the bridge.	الشارع مزدحم بسبب صيانة الجسر.ash-shâri'u muzdahimun bisababi siyânati l-jisri.
closure	إغلاقighlâq
route	مسارmasâr
The driver did not arrive on time due to the closure of the route.	لم يصل السائق في الموعد بسبب إغلاق المسار.lam yasili s-sâ'iqu fil-maw'idi bisababi ighlâqil-masâr.
thanks to	بفضلbifadli
transportation	مواصلاتmuwâsalât
Life is better here thanks to the transportation network.	الحياة أفضل هنا بفضل شبكة المواصلات.al-hayâtu afdalu hunâ bifadli shabakati al-muwâsalât
growth	نموnumuww
The city was faster in growth thanks to the transportation network.	كانت المدينة أسرع نموا بفضل شبكة المواصلات.kânat al-madînatu asra'a numuwwan bifadli shabakati al-muwâsalât
planning	تخطيطtakhtît
urban	عمراني'umrâni
The woman succeeded in the project thanks to the planning of the urban center.	نجحت المرأة في المشروع بفضل تخطيط المركز العمراني.najahatil mar'atu fil mashrou'i bifadli takhtiti al-markazi al-'umrani
pedestrians	مشاةmushâh
rail	سكةsikkah
The pedestrians did not cross the street due to the closure of the rail route.	لم يعبر المشاة الشارع بسبب إغلاق مسار السكة.lam ya'buri al-mushâtu ash-shâri'a bisababi ighlâqi masâri as-sikkah
Is the delay due to the maintenance of the pedestrian bridge?	هل التأخير بسبب صيانة جسر المشاة؟hal at-ta'khîru bisababi siyânati jisri al-mushâti?
The woman did not travel by train due to the closure of the rail.	لم تسافر المرأة بالقطار بسبب إغلاق السكة.lam tusâfiri al-mar'atu bilqitâri bisababi ighlâqi as-sikkah
The city had become larger thanks to the growth of the urban center.	كانت المدينة قد أصبحت أكبر بفضل نمو المركز العمراني.kânati almadînatu qad asbahat akbara bifadli numuwwi almarkazi al'umrâniyyi
Success is not due to luck, but rather thanks to the planning of the project.	ليس النجاح بسبب الحظ، بل بفضل تخطيط المشروع.laysa an-najâhu bisababi al-hazzi, bal bifadli takhtîti al-mashrû'i.