why
adverb
uk/waɪ/us/waɪ/A1
for whatreason:
为什么"I'm goinghome." "Why?"“我要回家了。”“为什么？”
Why did youchoosetolivein London?你为什么选择在伦敦生活？
Whywait? Let'sleavenow.为什么要等？我们现在就走吧。
Why should Ihelphim - he neverhelpsme?我为什么要帮他——他从来都没帮过我？
Why is it that Ifindchocolatesoaddictive?为什么我觉得巧克力如此让人上瘾呢？
Thepoliceaskedme toexplainwhy I hadn'treportedtheaccidentsooner.警方要我解释为什么没有及时报告这起事故。
I don'tknowwhy she isn't here.我不知道为什么她没在这儿。
Quite why he isn't here today is amystery.他今天为什么不在这里真是个谜。
There is noreasonwhy we shouldn'tsucceed.我们没有理由不成功。
- Shecitedthreereasonswhypeopleget intodebt.
- I'll nevercomprehendwhy she did what she did.
- It'seasytoseewhy he's sopopular.
- Shemarchedinto myofficedemandingtoknowwhy I hadn't written myreport.
- Myusualtrainwascancelled. That's why I'm so late.
Linguistics: question words & expressions
- amirite
- devil
- extent
- how about...?idiom
- how, what, why, etc. on earth...idiom
- in God's/heaven's nameidiom
- question tag
- trick
- what the blazes...?idiom
- what's that (all) about (then)?idiom
- what's the score?idiom
- what/where/how/why the devilidiom
- when
- whenever
- where
- wherefore
- which
- who
- why don't you...?idiom
- world
Grammar
Relative pronouns: when,whereandwhy
In informal language, we often use where, when or why to introduce defining relative clauses instead of at which, on which or for which.…Why
Why is a wh-word. We use why to talk about reasons and explanations.…Whyas a question word
We can use why to ask about reasons and explanations:…Why:asking for reasons
When we ask for reasons in speaking, we can use the phrase why is that? In informal conversations we often say why’s that?:…That’s why …: giving reasons
We often use the phrase that’s why to give a reason:…Why should …: expressing annoyance
When we are annoyed about something, we sometimes use the phrase why should:…Why don’tandwhy not: making suggestions
We use why don’t and why not to make suggestions:…Why not?:showing agreement
We can use the phrase why not? as a reply which shows that we agree to a suggestion or request:…Idioms
why don't you...?
why not...?
why
exclamation
mainlyUSorold-fashioneduk/waɪ/us/waɪ/used toexpresssurpriseoranger:
哟，嗨，哎呀（表示惊讶或生气）Why, if it isn'toldGeorgie Frazer!哟，这不是老乔吉‧弗雷泽吗？
Why, I've neverseenanything like it!哇，我从没见过这样的事！
Linguistics: interjections
- aiyo
- alas and alackphrase
- attaboy
- attagirl
- auf Wiedersehen
- aw shucks
- eatyourheart outidiom
- figure
- goodo
- mazel tov
- more
- more power toyourelbow!idiom
- need
- need I say more?idiom
- no siridiom
- period
- small wonderidiom
- the rest is historyidiom
- you seeidiom
- yum yum
Grammar
Why
Why is a wh-word. We use why to talk about reasons and explanations.…Whyas a question word
We can use why to ask about reasons and explanations:…Why:asking for reasons
When we ask for reasons in speaking, we can use the phrase why is that? In informal conversations we often say why’s that?:…That’s why …: giving reasons
We often use the phrase that’s why to give a reason:…Why should …: expressing annoyance
When we are annoyed about something, we sometimes use the phrase why should:…Why don’tandwhy not: making suggestions
We use why don’t and why not to make suggestions:…Why not?:showing agreement
We can use the phrase why not? as a reply which shows that we agree to a suggestion or request:…why
noun
uk/waɪ/us/waɪ/the whys and (the) wherefores
thereasonsfor something:
为什么；原因Iknowvery little about the whys and thewhereforesof thesituation.我根本不知道是什么原因导致出现了这种情况。
Motives and reasons
- causeless
- drive
- first principles
- from a place ofidiom
- ground
- hidden agenda
- impulse
- in the name ofsomethingidiom
- inclination
- mainspring
- motivation
- motive
- name
- object
- peg
- place
- rationale
- reason
- should
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Reasons and explanations