due to 正確用法大解析｜避免英文寫作常見6大錯誤 [Mastering Correct Usage of ‘due to’ in English Writing: Avoid The Top 6 Common Errors]

「due to」雖小但舉足輕重，正式英文寫作常因錯用而扣分。本文綜合各大學術指南，深入說明 due to 的基本語法規則，並條列最常見的六種誤用情形。透過正誤對照表、寫作檢查流程、實例剖析與專家建議，您將明確分辨 due to 與 because of 的適用情境。跟著學會正確用法，提升英文專業度、讓文稿一氣呵成獲國際肯定！

深入解析 due to 的正確語法規則

due to 的基本定義與功能

due to 是一個表示「因為…導致」的片語，通常意指「歸因於某個原因」。本質上它是形容詞片語，須連結到名詞或名詞片語。根據劍橋詞典、牛津英語詞典以及多份國際寫作規範，due to 應用於修飾名詞，通常位於 be 動詞（如 am、is、are、was、were）或等值動詞之後。

正確句型	錯誤句型
The delay was due to the heavy rain.	Due to the heavy rain, the match was postponed.

（正確示範強調「延遲」這個名詞是因「大雨」所致，錯誤用法將 due to 錯用於引導副詞子句。）

跟 because of 有什麼不同？

一般人容易將 due to 和 because of 混用。事實上，它們在現代口語中常被當作同義詞使用，但在正式寫作或學術論文中，兩者必須區分：

• due to：修飾名詞（如：The flight cancellation was due to fog.）
• because of：修飾動詞（如：The flight was cancelled because of fog.）

用法	句型結構	範例
due to	名詞（be動詞後）+ due to + 原因	His illness is due to stress.
because of	動詞 + because of + 原因	He became ill because of stress.

小提醒：在許多正式場域，尤其是出版學術文章時，編輯會特別檢查「due to」的準確性，錯用將影響專業度。

常見 six 大 due to 誤用類型解析

錯誤1——直接放在句首當連接詞

許多人習慣將 due to 放在句首作副詞子句使用，這是語法錯誤！

• 錯誤用法：Due to heavy rain, the event was cancelled.
• 正確應用：The cancellation of the event was due to heavy rain.

錯誤2——修飾動詞而非名詞

如前所述，due to 只能修飾名詞，不能直接修飾動詞。

• 錯誤用法：The match was postponed due to it rained heavily.
• 正確用法：The match was postponed because it rained heavily.

錯誤3——當 because of 的替代品直接插入句中

許多人誤將 due to 當 because of 同義詞直接插入句中，應避免此類口語化誤用。

• 錯誤用法：She quit the job due to she was unhappy.
• 正確用法：She quit the job because she was unhappy.
  或
  Her resignation was due to unhappiness.

錯誤4——忽略 be 動詞配對

due to 通常需要有 be 動詞搭配，單獨出現時語意不完整。

正確	錯誤
The power outage was due to a storm.	The power outage due to a storm.

錯誤5——搭配非名詞或片語

有些人把 due to 連接到一個修飾語或子句，這是不正確的。

• 錯誤用法：The project was delayed due to John not finished his part.
• 正確用法：The project was delayed because John had not finished his part.
  或
  The project’s delay was due to John’s incomplete work.

錯誤6——誤用於從句內

在部分複雜句或倒裝句中，due to 位置不對常造成語意模糊或語法錯誤。

• 錯誤用法：Students could not enter, due to that the main door was locked.
• 正確用法：Students could not enter because the main door was locked.

due to 正確寫作技巧與常見檢查表

標準寫作流程

• 確認主詞是否為名詞或名詞片語。
• 檢查句中 be 動詞，確保 due to 放在主詞與 be 動詞之後。
• 避免將 due to 放在句首。
• 遇到動詞修飾時，一律用 because of。
• 保持句意簡潔，必要時使用分詞結構傳達原因。

簡易自我檢查表

問題	建議	範例
due to 前有無 be 動詞?	有→安全；無→改為 because of	The loss was due to theft.
due to 修飾對象是否為名詞？	是→正確；否→改寫	Traffic jam was due to fog.
因果關係明確、不模糊？	明確→正確；不明確→修正	Success was due to hard work.
減少重複、冗長結構？	有→簡化句型	His resignation was due to stress.

due to 的實際運用與延伸說明

學術論文常見 due to 錯誤案例

在學術寫作中，「due to」的正確與否常與文章評分或期刊錄用率直接相關。許多論文編輯指出中國及台灣地區作者經常出現以下錯誤：

• 誤以為 due to 等同 because of，全句格式出現重大語法缺陷。
• 在摘要與結果討論部分，濫用 due to 作為連接詞，一旦被審稿人指正，需大幅修改。

正確案例：

The changes in population structure were mainly due to migration from rural areas.

錯誤案例：

Due to the lack of data, the results are not reliable.

建議修正為：

The unreliability of the results is due to the lack of data.

商業寫作與新聞英文的 due to 用法

在商業公文和新聞稿中，due to 常出現在公告、說明延誤或狀況異動時，但同樣必須遵守語法規則。

正確新聞稿範例：
The opening of the new mall was delayed due to construction issues.

不建議新聞英文用法：
Due to construction issues, the opening of the new mall was delayed.
（如非口語、非正式場合，建議改寫）

因應國際標準，due to 寫作建議

根據APA（美國心理學會）、Chicago Manual of Style等權威寫作指南，due to 應遵循「僅修飾名詞」原則。許多權威機構、出版需求仍建議在正式論文、申請文件時盡量使用 because of 來避免爭議。

表格總覽——due to 與 because of 實用對照表

句型情境	適用語法	範例	語法說明
強調原因修飾名詞	due to	The accident was due to speeding.	主要名詞+ be 動詞 + due to + 原因
強調動作、句子原因說明	because of	The traffic jam occurred because of rain.	動詞 + because of + 原因
不確定語氣、需轉換時	because of	Many flights were canceled because of the storm.	建議用 because of 保險
正式文件書寫	due to	Losses were largely due to currency fluctuation.	更偏向嚴謹寫作修辭

專家建議——如何不再混用 due to 與 because of？

專家強調：寧可保守地使用 because of，除非你能確保 due to 符合語法環境。不論是申請國外學位、發表國際論文，還是日常寫郵件，將 due to 嚴格限定修飾名詞，是提升英文專業度的重要關鍵。

• 看到be動詞後方需寫「原因」時，首選 due to。
• 看到動詞後需要加上「因為…」理由，直接用 because of。
• 長句或複雜句型時，盡量避免 due to 作為開頭，改寫為名詞結構。

英文寫作的細節往往決定專業度，而 due to 的用法正是其中關鍵環節之一。每一次修正錯誤，都是逐步走向精準英文的里程碑。希望本報導能幫助您不再迷惘於 due to 與 because of 的選擇，寫出更嚴謹、正確、被國際審稿人一眼肯定的英文作品。