World Languages Lexicon
10 Language-to-English Dictionariespor qué
Pronunciation / Transliteration: por keh
"¿Por qué estudias español?"
Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
For what cause, reason, or purpose; on account of which.
"Why did you choose to study Chinese linguistics?"
- 1
A question concerning the reason or cause of something.
"Every child eventually asks the endless whys about how the universe works."
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
Derived from Old English hwī, meaning 'why' or 'for what', originating from Proto-Germanic *hwī, an instrumental case form of the interrogative base *hw-. Over centuries, the spelling shifted from hwī to why while retaining its fundamental interrogative and relative functions inquiring about reason or purpose.
Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Why"?
10 Global Lexicons: How "Why" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
pourquoi
Transliteration: poor-kwah
"Pourquoi es-tu en retard ?"
warum
Transliteration: vah-rum
"Warum kommst du nicht mit?"
perché
Transliteration: per-kay
"Perché hai fatto questo?"
por qué
Transliteration: por keh
"¿Por qué estudias español?"
por que
Transliteration: por kee
"Por que você não respondeu?"
क्यों
Transliteration: kyuun
"आप यह काम क्यों कर रहे हैं?"
为什么
Transliteration: wèi shén me
"你为什么喜欢学外语？"
왜
Transliteration: wae
"너는 왜 여기에 있니?"
なぜ
Transliteration: naze
"なぜ彼らは来なかったのですか？"
Related Vocabulary Words to Explore
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