due
due Lexical Profile
due Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Expected, scheduled, or planned to happen or arrive at a particular time.
"The commuter train is due to arrive at the station in five minutes."
Required to be paid or submitted immediately or at a specified time as a debt or obligation.
"The monthly rent payment is due on the first day of each month."
Of the proper quality or extent; adequate, fitting, or deserved.
"After Due consideration of all the evidence, the committee approved the proposal."
• noun
An obligatory payment, fee, or charge, especially a regular fee paid for membership in a club, union, or organization (usually used in the plural).
"All members must pay their annual club dues before the end of January."
What is owed or deserved by someone as a moral or legal right.
"To give the architect her due, the building's design is remarkably energy-efficient."
• adverb
Directly or straight; used immediately before a compass point to indicate an exact direction.
"The expedition traveled due north for twenty miles before setting up camp."
Word Nuance & Usage
Often confused with its homophone 'do' in American English; also, in strict formal writing, 'due to' is traditionally reserved for adjectival use after a linking verb (e.g., 'The delay was due to rain'), while 'because of' or 'owing to' is preferred for adverbial phrases.
• Rhymes for due
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed from Old French 'deu', the past participle of 'devoir' (to owe), which ultimately derives from the Latin verb 'debere' (to owe or be under an obligation).