1. The fundamental reason or primary source of a problem or issue, rather than a symptom or superficial cause
The root cause of the system failure was a faulty component, not the software update.
A causa raiz da falha do sistema foi um componente defeituoso, não a atualização de software.
2. In problem-solving and quality management, the underlying factor that, when addressed, resolves the issue completely
We need to identify the root cause before implementing any corrective measures.
Precisamos identificar a causa raiz antes de implementar qualquer medida corretiva.