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1 wherefore
B ‡ conj donc.the whys and wherefores le pourquoi et le comment. -
2 wherefore
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3 why
why, US hwaI❢ Why translates as pourquoi in French, but see B, C below for exceptions. As with other words such as où, quand, comment etc, questions are formed by inserting est-ce que after the question word: why did you go? = pourquoi est-ce que tu y es allé? or by inverting the subject and verb after the question word, which is slightly more formal: pourquoi y es-tu allé? In spoken French the question word can be put at the end: tu y es allé pourquoi? why occurs with certain reporting verbs such as ask, explain, know, think and wonder. For translations, see these entries.A adv1 ( in questions) pourquoi ; why do you ask? pourquoi est-ce que tu me poses la question?, pourquoi me poses-tu la question? ; why didn't she tell us? pourquoi est-ce qu'elle ne nous l'a pas dit?, pourquoi ne nous l'a-t-elle pas dit? ; why risk everything? pourquoi tout risquer? ; why bother? pourquoi se tracasser? ; ‘I'm annoyed’-‘why is that?’ ‘je suis vexé’-‘pourquoi?’ ; why all the fuss? pourquoi tout ce remue-ménage? ; why the delay? pourquoi ce retard? ; why me? pourquoi moi? ; oh no, why me? oh non, pourquoi est-ce que ça me tombe dessus? ; why not somebody else? pourquoi pas quelqu'un d'autre? ; ‘it's not possible’-‘why not?’ ‘ce n'est pas possible’-‘pourquoi pas?’ ; ‘would you be interested?’-‘why not?’ ‘ça t'intéresserait?’-‘pourquoi pas?’ ; ‘can I apply?’-‘I don't see why not’ ‘est-ce que je peux m'inscrire?’-‘je ne vois pas pourquoi tu ne pourrais pas’ ;2 ( when making suggestions) pourquoi ; why don't you apply for the job? pourquoi est-ce que tu ne poses pas ta candidature? ; why don't we go away for the weekend? pourquoi ne pas partir quelque part pour le week-end? ; why don't I invite them for dinner? et si je les invitais à manger? ; why not sell the car? pourquoi ne pas vendre la voiture? ; why not send off now for our brochure? pourquoi ne pas demander dès maintenant notre brochure? ; why not a mix of traditional and modern? pourquoi pas un mélange de classique et de moderne? ;3 (expressing irritation, defiance) pourquoi ; why don't they mind their own business? pourquoi est-ce qu'ils ne s'occupent pas de leurs affaires? ; why can't you be quiet? tu ne peux pas te taire deux minutes? ; why do I bother? à quoi ça sert que je me donne du mal? ; why should they get all the praise? pourquoi est-ce que c'est eux qui auraient tous les compliments? ; ‘tell them’-‘why should I?’ ‘dis- leur’-‘et pourquoi est-ce que je devrais le faire?’ ;4 ( also whyever) ( expressing surprise) whyever not? GB pourquoi pas? ; whyever did you say that? pourquoi donc as-tu dit cela?B conj pour ça ; that is why they came c'est pour ça qu'ils sont venus ; that's not why I asked ce n'est pas pour ça que j'avais posé la question ; is that why she telephoned? est-ce que c'est pour ça qu'elle a téléphoné? ; so that's why! ( finally understanding) ah, c'est pour ça! ; ‘why?’-‘because you're stubborn, that's why!’ ‘pourquoi?’-‘parce que tu es têtu, c'est tout!’ ; the reason why la raison pour laquelle ; one of the reasons why they left une des raisons pour lesquelles ils sont partis ; I need to know the reason why j'ai besoin de savoir pourquoi ; ⇒ reason A 2.
См. также в других словарях:
wherefore — [hwer′fôr′, wer′fôr′] adv. [ME hwarfore: see WHERE & FOR1] Archaic for what reason or purpose? why? [wherefore are you angry?] conj. Archaic 1. for which [the reason wherefore we have met] 2. on account of which; b … English World dictionary
Wherefore — Where fore, adv. & conj. [Where + for.] [1913 Webster] 1. For which reason; so; used relatively. [1913 Webster] Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Matt. vii. 20. [1913 Webster] 2. For what reason; why; used interrogatively. [1913… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
wherefore — index consequently, reason (basis) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 wherefore … Law dictionary
Wherefore — Where fore, n. the reason why. [Colloq.] [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
wherefore — c.1200, hwarfore, from WHERE (Cf. where) + FOR (Cf. for). Cf. Du. waarvoor, O.N. hvar fyrir, Swed. varfor … Etymology dictionary
wherefore — archaic ► ADVERB ▪ for what reason? ► ADVERB & CONJUNCTION ▪ as a result of which … English terms dictionary
wherefore — 1. adverb /ˈweə(r)ˌfɔː(r),ˈʍeə(r)ˌfɔː(r)/ a) Why, for what reason, because of what. Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power? b) Therefore. Romeo, O Romeo. Wherefore art thou, Romeo? 2 … Wiktionary
wherefore — I (Roget s IV) modif. Syn. why?, for what?, for which reason?, therefore, so, accordingly, thereupon. II (Roget s Thesaurus II) noun 1. That which provides a reason or justification: call, cause, ground (often used in plural), justification,… … English dictionary for students
wherefore — adverb, conjunction old use 1 used to ask why something has happened: Wherefore comest thou? 2 for that reason: Skills are the art of doing, wherefore they must be taught by practical example. see also: whys and wherefores why 3 … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
wherefore — See: WHY AND WHEREFORE … Dictionary of American idioms
wherefore — See: WHY AND WHEREFORE … Dictionary of American idioms
