verursachte

Verursachte is a form of the German verb verursachen, meaning to cause or to bring about. It is the simple past (Präteritum) form used with first person singular (ich verursachte) and third person singular (er/sie/es verursachte). The word can appear in narrative writing to indicate a past event. The prefix ver- combined with Ursache (cause) reflects the action of bringing about an effect, sometimes with nuance of responsibility or result.

Usage and context

In everyday speech, German speakers more commonly use the present perfect form hat verursacht to describe past events, while verusachte appears mainly in written or formal contexts. Examples: "Der Sturm verursachte erhebliche Schäden." (The storm caused substantial damage.) "Ich verursachte eine Verzögerung." (I caused a delay.)

Relation to other forms

The past participle of verursachen is verursacht, and it is used with haben to form the present perfect and other compound tenses: "hat verursacht." The participle can also function as a non-finite form in compound tenses or, in some cases, as an attributive past participle, though the standard attributive form for plural nouns is verursachte(n) (for example, die verursachten Schäden).

Etymology and related terms

The verb stems from ver- plus Ursache (cause). Related verbs include verursachen (to cause) and verwandte Begriffe such as Ursache (cause) and verursachend (causing, in participial forms).

See also

Verursachen, Ursache, veranlassen.