Due To v. Because Of

Lots of people mess this up. It's not that hard, though.

First things first: they are not interchangeable.

These are the rules a grammarian might tell you:

Due to is an adjective. It modifies nouns and pronouns.

Because of is an adverb. It modifies verbs, adjectives, and clauses.

Due to = Adjective

Because = Adverb

(Memorize it!)

Let's look at some specific examples:

Due to a lack of interest, the club disbanded.

'Lack of interest' is a noun. According to the rule, what modifies a noun? Due to.

The club disbanded because of a lack of interest.

'Disbanded' is a verb. What modifies a verb? Because of.

Let's try another.

Due to circumstances beyond our control, the concert has been cancelled.

'Circumstances' is a noun, so it should be modified by due to.

The concert has been cancelled because of lack of interest.

'Cancelled' is a verb. It requires because of.

Ok, one more (with apologies to William Carlos Williams).

Due to his stunning lack of courtesy, Vic ate the plums in the icebox. They were delicious.

'Lack of courtesy,' even a stunning one, is a noun. It gets the due to treatment.

Vic ate the plums in the icebox because of his fear they would spoil if the power went out. They were delicious.

'Ate' is a verb. Why did Vic eat? Because of his fear. (Although it would be better to rewrite the sentence as "Vic ate the plums in the icebox because he feared they would spoil if the power went out. They were delicious.")

I missed the first act of the play due to heavy traffic.

I missed the first act of the play caused by heavy traffic.

Hmm. Sounds like the play was caused by heavy traffic. That isn’t right, is it?

A correct sentence is:

I missed the first act of the play because of heavy traffic.

See? It isn't that hard.

But take a look at these actual headlines:

Kentucky Derby postponed to September due to coronavirus (10TV.com)

Postponed is a verb. It should be Kentucky Derby postponed to September because of coronavirus.

What stores are closing across the U.S. due to the coronavirus (CBS News)

Same deal: closing is a verb. What stores are closing across the U.S. because of the coronavirus.

Now try this one:

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s move to close primary polls due to coronavirus spawns confusion, criticism (Washington Post)

The modified word in this case is "move," which is a noun, so due to is correct.

More than half of American jobs are at risk because of coronavirus (CNN Business)

'Are at risk," so a verb. Because of modifies verbs and adverbs, so it is correct.