Consequences

How to spell consequences

12 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce consequences

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does consequences mean?

1. nounThe results or effects that follow from an action or set of circumstances.

Consequences in a sentence

• Missing the deadline can have serious consequences for the whole team.

• She weighed the financial consequences before signing the contract.

Where does consequences come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word descends from the Latin consequentia, meaning 'a following after' or 'a result', which was built on the verb consequi, 'to follow closely' or 'to come after'. That verb joined the prefix con-, here acting as an intensifier meaning 'with' or 'altogether', to sequi, the ordinary Latin verb 'to follow'. The idea is that a consequence is literally the thing that follows on from an action, the outcome that comes after it. English took the word in during the late 1300s, by way of Old French, first in the sense of a logical result and soon in the broader sense of an effect or outcome. The same sequi root sits inside a family of familiar relatives such as 'sequence', 'sequel', 'consecutive', and 'subsequent', and noticing that shared 'sequ' spine is a useful way to remember the tricky 'sequ' spelling rather than writing it as 'cons-' with a 'qu' slip.

How the word is built

• con- (with, together)
• sequ (to follow)
• -ence (noun-forming suffix)
• -s (plural)