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1 the whys and (the) wherefores
el cómo y el porqué -
2 why
1. adverb(for which reason (?): `Why did you hit the child?'; `He hit the child.' `Why?'; Why haven't you finished?; `I haven't finished.' `Why not?'; `Let's go to the cinema.' `Why not?' (= Let's!); Tell me why you came here.) por qué
2. relative pronoun(for which: Give me one good reason why I should help you!) por quéwhy adv por quéwhy didn't you come yesterday? ¿por qué no viniste ayer?tr[waɪ]1 (direct questions - for what reason) por qué; (- for what purpose) para qué■ why didn't you go? ¿por qué no fuiste?■ why do you hate me? ¿por qué me odias?■ why bother? ¿por qué molestarse?■ why do you need the money? ¿para qué necesitas el dinero?2 (indirect questions - for what reason) por qué; (- for what purpose) para qué3 (relative) por eso1 ¡vaya!, ¡anda!, ¡toma!1 porqué nombre masculino\SMALLIDIOMATIC EXPRESSION/SMALLthe whys and (the) wherefores el cómo y el porquéwhy ever? ¿por qué demonios?why not? ¿por qué no?■ why don't we go out for lunch? ¿por qué no comemos fuera?why ['hwaɪ] adv: por quéwhy did you do it?: ¿por qué lo hizo?why conj: por quéI know why he left: yo sé por qué salióthere's no reason why it should exist: no hay razón para que existaadv.• por qué adv.• pues adv.conj.• por lo que conj.• por que conj.interj.• toma interj.
I hwaɪ, waɪadverb por quéwhy are you laughing? — ¿por qué te ríes?
why not? — ¿por qué no?
why don't you apply for the post? — ¿por qué no solicitas el puesto?
this is why the attempt failed — fue por esto or por esta razón que el intento fracasó
because he lied to me, that's why! — porque me mintió! por eso!
II
interjection vaya!, anda!why, of course! — por supuesto que sí!
III
noun porqué m[waɪ]she has to know the whys and wherefores — tiene que saber todas las razones or todos los detalles
1.ADV por quéwhy not? — ¿por qué no?
why on earth didn't you tell me? — ¿por qué demonios no me lo dijiste?
2.EXCL ¡toma!, ¡anda!why, it's you! — ¡toma, eres tú!, ¡anda, eres tú!
why, what's the matter? — bueno, ¿qué pasa?
why, there are 8 of us! — ¡si somos 8!
why, it's easy! — ¡vamos, es muy fácil!
3.NWHY ► Why can usually be translated by por qué:
Why didn't you come? ¿Por qué no viniste?
They asked her why she hadn't finished her report Le preguntaron por qué no había terminado el informe NOTE: Remember the difference in spelling between p or qué ( why) and porque (because). ► To ask specifically about the {purpose} of something, you can translate why using para qué:
Why go if we are not needed? ¿Para qué vamos a ir si no nos necesitan? ► In statements, you can translate ( the reason) why using por qué, la razón ( por la que) or el motivo ( por el que):
Tell me (the reason) why you don't want to accept the proposal Dime por qué or la razón por la que or el motivo por el que no quieres aceptar la propuesta ► Translate tha t's why using por eso:
That's why they wouldn't pay Por eso no querían pagar ► Like all question words in Spanish, por qué can function as a masculine noun. Note that in el porqué, porqué i s written as one word:
I'd like to know why he's absent or the reason for his absence Me gustaría saber el porqué de su ausencia For further uses and examples, see main entry* * *
I [hwaɪ, waɪ]adverb por quéwhy are you laughing? — ¿por qué te ríes?
why not? — ¿por qué no?
why don't you apply for the post? — ¿por qué no solicitas el puesto?
this is why the attempt failed — fue por esto or por esta razón que el intento fracasó
because he lied to me, that's why! — porque me mintió! por eso!
II
interjection vaya!, anda!why, of course! — por supuesto que sí!
III
noun porqué mshe has to know the whys and wherefores — tiene que saber todas las razones or todos los detalles
См. также в других словарях:
the whys and the wherefores — the whys and (the) wherefores see ↑why, 3 • • • Main Entry: ↑wherefore the whys and (the) wherefores : the reasons for something She explained the whys and the wherefores of the sudden price increase. • • • Main Entry: ↑ … Useful english dictionary
(the) whys and the wherefores — the whys and (the) wherefores the reasons for something. I know very little about the whys and the wherefores of the situation … New idioms dictionary
(the) whys and (the) wherefores — the ˌwhys and (the) ˈwherefores idiom the reasons for sth • I had no intention of going into the whys and the wherefores of the situation. Main entry: ↑whyidiom … Useful english dictionary
the whys and wherefores — All the reasons • • • Main Entry: ↑why * * * the whys and (the) wherefores see ↑why, 3 • • • Main Entry: ↑wherefore the whys and (the) wherefores … Useful english dictionary
(the) whys and wherefores — the whys and wherefores phrase the reasons and explanations The prime minister should be able to make a decision without having to explain all the whys and wherefores to a bunch of journalists. Thesaurus: reasons and excusessynonym Main entry:… … Useful english dictionary
(the) whys and wherefores — the whys and (the) wherefores the reasons for something. I know very little about the whys and the wherefores of the situation … New idioms dictionary
(the) whys and wherefores of something — the whys and wherefores (of (something)) the reasons for something. The movie doesn t spend much time worrying about the whys and wherefores of its stars behavior … New idioms dictionary
(the) whys and wherefores of — the whys and wherefores (of (something)) the reasons for something. The movie doesn t spend much time worrying about the whys and wherefores of its stars behavior … New idioms dictionary
(the) whys and wherefores — the whys and wherefores (of (something)) the reasons for something. The movie doesn t spend much time worrying about the whys and wherefores of its stars behavior … New idioms dictionary
the whys and wherefores — the reasons and explanations The prime minister should be able to make a decision without having to explain all the whys and wherefores to a bunch of journalists … English dictionary
whys and wherefores — To talk about the whys and wherefores means to discuss the reasons. We need to discuss the whys and wherefores of our failure … English Idioms & idiomatic expressions