due
( dues plural )
1 prep-phrase If an event is due to something, it happens or exists as a direct result of that thing.
v-link PREP n
The country's economic problems are largely due to the weakness of the recovery...
2 prep-phrase You can say due to to introduce the reason for something happening. Some speakers of English believe that it is not correct to use due to in this way.
Due to the large volume of letters he receives Dave regrets he is unable to answer queries personally...
3 adj If something is due at a particular time, it is expected to happen, be done, or arrive at that time.
usu v-link ADJ, oft ADJ to-inf, ADJ prep/adv
The results are due at the end of the month..., Mr Carter is due in London on Monday., ...customers who paid later than twenty days after the due date.
4 adj Due attention or consideration is the proper, reasonable, or deserved amount of it under the circumstances.
ADJ n
(=proper)
After due consideration it was decided to send him away to live with foster parents...
5 adj Something that is due, or that is dueto someone, is owed to them, either as a debt or because they have a right to it.
v-link ADJ, oft ADJ to n
I was sent a cheque for £1,525 and advised that no further pension was due..., I've got some leave due to me and I was going to Tasmania for a fortnight.
Due is also a preposition., prep oft n PREP n
He had not taken a summer holiday that year but had accumulated the leave due him.
6 adj If someone is due for something, that thing is planned to happen or be given to them now, or very soon, often after they have been waiting for it for a long time.
v-link ADJ for n
He is not due for release until 2020.
Due is also a preposition., prep
I reckon I'm due one of my travels.
7 n-plural Dues are sums of money that you give regularly to an organization that you belong to, for example a social club or trade union, in order to pay for being a member.
oft poss N
Only 18 of the UN's 180 members had paid their dues by the January deadline.
8 adv Due is used before the words `north', `south', `east', or `west' to indicate that something is in exactly the direction mentioned.
ADV adv/adj
They headed due north...
9 If you say that something will happen or take place in due course, you mean that you cannot make it happen any quicker and it will happen when the time is right for it.
♦
in due course phrase PHR with cl
In due course the baby was born...
10 You can say `to give him his due', or `giving him his due' when you are admitting that there are some good things about someone, even though there are things that you do not like about them.
♦
to give sb their due phrase
To give Linda her due, she had tried to encourage John in his school work.
11 You can say `with due respect' when you are about to disagree politely with someone.
♦
with due respect phrase PHR cl (politeness)
With all due respect, you're wrong.