Definitions for why
ʰwaɪ, waɪwhy

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. why, whereforenoun

   the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase `the whys and wherefores'

WiktionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. whynoun

   The reason.

   A good article will cover the who, the what, the when, the where, the why and the how.

2. whyadverb

   For what cause, reason, or purpose.

   Why did you do that?

3. whyconjunction

   The reason that.

   I don't know why he did that.

4. whyinterjection

   Exclamation of mild surprise.

   Why, I think it would work fine!

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Whyadverb

   Etymology: hwi, forhwi , Saxon.

   1. For what reason? Interrogatively.

   They both deal justly with you; why? not from any regard they have for justice, but because their fortune depends on their credit. Jonathan Swift.

   2. For which reason. Relatively.

   Mortar will not have attained its utmost compactness till fourscore years after it has been employed; and this is one reason why, in demolishing ancient fabricks, it is more easy to break the stone than the mortar. Boyle.

   No ground of enmity
   Why he should mean me ill. John Milton.

   Such, whose sole bliss is eating; who can give
   But that one brutal reason, why they live. Dryden.

   3. For what reason. Relatively.

   Shall I tell you why: ——
   —— Ay, sir, and wherefore; for they say,
   Every why hath a wherefore. William Shakespeare.

   I was dispatch’d for their defence and guard;
   And listen why, for I will tell you now. John Milton.

   We examine the why, the what and the how of things. Roger L'Estrange.

   Turn the discourse; I have a reason why
   I would not have you speak so tenderly. Dryden.

   4. It is sometimes used emphatically.

   Ninus’ tomb, man; why, you must not speak that yet: that you answer to Pyram. William Shakespeare.

   You have not been a-bed then?
   Why, no; the day had broke before we parted. William Shakespeare.

   Whence is this? why: from that essential suitableness which obedience has to the relation which is between a rational creature and his Creator. Robert South, Sermons.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Why

   Why is a song by 3T. It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and produced by Michael Jackson. This single comes from the album Brotherhood and it was released in 1996. The song was selected to be part of Jackson's ninth album HIStory, but it was taken out and Jackson decided to give it away to his nephews. This song was well received in European and Asian charts. A music video was produced to promote the single. It features 3T and Jackson and is shot in black and white. The music video was released on the Michael Jackson's box set, Michael Jackson's Vision.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Why

   "Why" is an adverb used to ask for the reason, cause, or purpose of something. It is typically used to inquire about the motive or explanation behind an action, event, or decision.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. Whyadverb

   for what cause, reason, or purpose; on what account; wherefore; -- used interrogatively. See the Note under What, pron., 1

2. Whyadverb

   for which; on account of which; -- used relatively

3. Whyadverb

   the reason or cause for which; that on account of which; on what account; as, I know not why he left town so suddenly; -- used as a compound relative

4. Whynoun

   a young heifer

5. Etymology: [OE. whi, why, AS. hw, hw, instrumental case of hw, hwt; akin to Icel. hv why, Dan. & Sw. hvi; cf. Goth. hw. . See Who.]

WikidataRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Why

   "Why" is the first solo single by the Scottish singer Annie Lennox, released in 1992. It was taken from her debut solo album Diva and reached no.5 in the United Kingdom and number thirty-four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The single also reached no.6 on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart. The music video won Lennox an award for Best Female Video at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Why

   hwī, adv. and conj. for what cause or reason? on which account: wherefore.—interj. used us an expletive or exclamation.—n. Why′-not (obs.), a dilemma.—Why, so (Shak.), an expression of unwilling consent.—The cause why, The reason why, the reason why a thing is, or is to be done; The why and wherefore, the whole reason. [A.S. hwí, hwý, instrumental case of hwá, who.]

Editors ContributionRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. why

   The reason.

   We knew why and it was accepted.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on March 20, 2020  

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. WHY

   What does WHY stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the WHY acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.

Matched Categories

1. • Reason

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'why' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #193

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'why' in Written Corpus Frequency: #134

3. Adverbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'why' in Adverbs Frequency: #29

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

1. [["1505","2"],["1507","3"],["1515","17"],["1520","17"],["1524","12"],["1527","2"],["1563","14"],["1564","8"],["1568","19"],["1572","14"],["1574","1"],["1575","2"],["1579","41"],["1581","121"],["1582","18"],["1584","12"],["1587","33"],["1588","5"],["1589","4"],["1590","253"],["1592","22"],["1593","7"],["1595","4"],["1597","2"],["1598","9"],["1600","2"],["1602","1"],["1603","14"],["1605","3"],["1606","3"],["1607","49"],["1610","1"],["1611","12"],["1612","15"],["1618","2"],["1619","1"],["1620","56"],["1621","6"],["1623","6"],["1624","15"],["1625","4"],["1626","9"],["1629","8"],["1630","34"],["1631","35"],["1632","4"],["1634","8"],["1635","8"],["1636","10"],["1637","9"],["1638","18"],["1640","14"],["1641","12"],["1642","36"],["1643","29"],["1644","157"],["1645","24"],["1646","7"],["1647","50"],["1648","49"],["1649","8"],["1650","21"],["1651","103"],["1652","20"],["1653","42"],["1654","1"],["1655","32"],["1656","141"],["1657","40"],["1658","169"],["1659","22"],["1660","16"],["1661","24"],["1662","30"],["1663","11"],["1664","50"],["1665","18"],["1666","29"],["1667","175"],["1668","98"],["1669","35"],["1670","33"],["1671","24"],["1672","120"],["1673","176"],["1674","32"],["1675","238"],["1676","381"],["1677","117"],["1678","186"],["1679","104"],["1680","131"],["1681","211"],["1682","481"],["1683","488"],["1684","430"],["1685","339"],["1686","176"],["1687","124"],["1688","378"],["1689","151"],["1690","193"],["1691","47"],["1692","209"],["1693","256"],["1694","377"],["1695","217"],["1696","166"],["1697","215"],["1698","581"],["1699","516"],["1700","770"],["1701","726"],["1702","785"],["1703","764"],["1704","1044"],["1705","809"],["1706","1215"],["1707","1025"],["1708","1169"],["1709","695"],["1710","1286"],["1711","809"],["1712","683"],["1713","889"],["1714","1620"],["1715","987"],["1716","830"],["1717","1435"],["1718","870"],["1719","998"],["1720","2364"],["1721","974"],["1722","2458"],["1723","1407"],["1724","1511"],["1725","1700"],["1726","1324"],["1727","2497"],["1728","1665"],["1729","1715"],["1730","1689"],["1731","2139"],["1732","2104"],["1733","760"],["1734","1691"],["1735","1466"],["1736","1506"],["1737","2458"],["1738","2302"],["1739","1618"],["1740","1571"],["1741","1122"],["1742","2020"],["1743","1569"],["1744","2847"],["1745","1776"],["1746","995"],["1747","2213"],["1748","2132"],["1749","1952"],["1750","2617"],["1751","3199"],["1752","1822"],["1753","2844"],["1754","2431"],["1755","2498"],["1756","1246"],["1757","1800"],["1758","2118"],["1759","2452"],["1760","1590"],["1761","1584"],["1762","1152"],["1763","2239"],["1764","1998"],["1765","2539"],["1766","2929"],["1767","2532"],["1768","3788"],["1769","1707"],["1770","2501"],["1771","2195"],["1772","2639"],["1773","1929"],["1774","2130"],["1775","2720"],["1776","2454"],["1777","2198"],["1778","1742"],["1779","1863"],["1780","1801"],["1781","2227"],["1782","2051"],["1783","1918"],["1784","2777"],["1785","2451"],["1786","3269"],["1787","3992"],["1788","4056"],["1789","3199"],["1790","4148"],["1791","4714"],["1792","4862"],["1793","4293"],["1794","5902"],["1795","5137"],["1796","5344"],["1797","4346"],["1798","4091"],["1799","4259"],["1800","6616"],["1801","12074"],["1802","8289"],["1803","8675"],["1804","8640"],["1805","9513"],["1806","12540"],["1807","10958"],["1808","13800"],["1809","14686"],["1810","14300"],["1811","20204"],["1812","19539"],["1813","13436"],["1814","16028"],["1815","15640"],["1816","15972"],["1817","17324"],["1818","16491"],["1819","15451"],["1820","24887"],["1821","17088"],["1822","27006"],["1823","25451"],["1824","35995"],["1825","35587"],["1826","23716"],["1827","23540"],["1828","26714"],["1829","30336"],["1830","38001"],["1831","28186"],["1832","31950"],["1833","32780"],["1834","29878"],["1835","36840"],["1836","37431"],["1837","33523"],["1838","33550"],["1839","44435"],["1840","43136"],["1841","37645"],["1842","38084"],["1843","41426"],["1844","44679"],["1845","47720"],["1846","46514"],["1847","39575"],["1848","43343"],["1849","42334"],["1850","49844"],["1851","54510"],["1852","54225"],["1853","66231"],["1854","69533"],["1855","57857"],["1856","64955"],["1857","55786"],["1858","53603"],["1859","60349"],["1860","64555"],["1861","44561"],["1862","37986"],["1863","45881"],["1864","51054"],["1865","49202"],["1866","52778"],["1867","52484"],["1868","56529"],["1869","61979"],["1870","60369"],["1871","67613"],["1872","59607"],["1873","64324"],["1874","69854"],["1875","65574"],["1876","67116"],["1877","66517"],["1878","63804"],["1879","67015"],["1880","77883"],["1881","77062"],["1882","84710"],["1883","102324"],["1884","92146"],["1885","86693"],["1886","72891"],["1887","86876"],["1888","85818"],["1889","77125"],["1890","83130"],["1891","94331"],["1892","101712"],["1893","100177"],["1894","96059"],["1895","102695"],["1896","117537"],["1897","113489"],["1898","117469"],["1899","150925"],["1900","155558"],["1901","146739"],["1902","146500"],["1903","148307"],["1904","159368"],["1905","141580"],["1906","154510"],["1907","154553"],["1908","164438"],["1909","152361"],["1910","155564"],["1911","156345"],["1912","170215"],["1913","159893"],["1914","154146"],["1915","143360"],["1916","145576"],["1917","152585"],["1918","131905"],["1919","145097"],["1920","177036"],["1921","153602"],["1922","184390"],["1923","147123"],["1924","138492"],["1925","141289"],["1926","132016"],["1927","156685"],["1928","150828"],["1929","153683"],["1930","160324"],["1931","155826"],["1932","135913"],["1933","118377"],["1934","137547"],["1935","150227"],["1936","153450"],["1937","159507"],["1938","161202"],["1939","154889"],["1940","144285"],["1941","137083"],["1942","136647"],["1943","119275"],["1944","110666"],["1945","123331"],["1946","164321"],["1947","183916"],["1948","186460"],["1949","200101"],["1950","211018"],["1951","206616"],["1952","211668"],["1953","208110"],["1954","217959"],["1955","227574"],["1956","234359"],["1957","254204"],["1958","255895"],["1959","261021"],["1960","298686"],["1961","332261"],["1962","350695"],["1963","367971"],["1964","365428"],["1965","408586"],["1966","426952"],["1967","443977"],["1968","502977"],["1969","504830"],["1970","536663"],["1971","517944"],["1972","542036"],["1973","529266"],["1974","530618"],["1975","530399"],["1976","569631"],["1977","580122"],["1978","597174"],["1979","607349"],["1980","638108"],["1981","648341"],["1982","677457"],["1983","707134"],["1984","752219"],["1985","785830"],["1986","854527"],["1987","895484"],["1988","941839"],["1989","1012374"],["1990","1100280"],["1991","1108881"],["1992","1192252"],["1993","1206684"],["1994","1307370"],["1995","1356164"],["1996","1433704"],["1997","1486867"],["1998","1572777"],["1999","1678536"],["2000","1974800"],["2001","1990807"],["2002","2286286"],["2003","2536007"],["2004","2767447"],["2005","2743889"],["2006","2870540"],["2007","3092340"],["2008","3734195"]]

How to pronounce why?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say why in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of why in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of why in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of why in a Sentence

1. Catherine Turcer:

   If we have a reduction in poll workers plus people calling off sick, it could be really problematic, that's why it makes sense to have more poll workers than you really need.

2. Lillian Vilchez:

   The experts gave me confidence that they would match me with the right person. I probably answered I don’t even know how many questions [about] myself over and over and then so many interviews in person with them; so they did their due diligence on me. So I was just assuming they put all this thought and effort in matching me with someone else. I was nervous but they kind of gave me a little more confidence in making the decision. i decided to get married at first sight because the dating scene here in Miami is terrible. It is very hard to meet a quality person and to have the opportunity to have a panel of experts match you with someone that believe is an actual match to you, why not do this? I mean it’s amazing.

3. Seng Yee Lau:

   The reason why marketing is no longer seen as the engine for growth is because we have not innovated ourselves, the people the brands are trying to address have formed themselves into a new digital civilization.

4. Former President Barack Obama:

   It would have been bad even with the best of governments. It has been an absolute chaotic disaster when that mindset — of 'what's in it for me' and 'to heck with everybody else' — when that mindset is operationalized in our government, that's why, I, by the way, am going to be spending as much time as necessary and campaigning as hard as I can for Joe Biden.

5. Rebecca Gibson:

   They don't understand what's happening, or why they have been separated from their parents, the children don't know if they will be safe. They don't know where their parents are and no one has given them any information.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=why
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Why
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=why
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/why
7. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=why
8. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=why
9. ^ Usage in printed sources
   https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=why