whyadv.n.int.
/wʌɪ/, U.S. /(h)waɪ/ I. Adverbial uses.
1.
a. In a direct question: For what reason? from what cause or motive? for what purpose? wherefore?
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c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xvii. 19 Hwi ne mihte we hyne ut-adrifan?
c1000 Apollonius (1834) 2 Hwig eart þu..swa gedrefedes modes?
a1175 Cott. Hom. 221 Hwi wolde god..him forwerne?
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 2407 Whi gaff ȝho swillc anndswere onn ȝæn. Þa godess enngell seȝȝde. Þatt ȝho wiþþ childe shollde ben?
c1250 Kent. Serm. in Old Eng. Misc. 33 Wee bie ye idel?
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 2757 Sire king wi lete ȝe mi moder & me biuore þe lede?
a1300 Cursor Mundi 1128 Sir cayn, Wy has þou þi broiþer slain?
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 47 And hue is hit uoul dede zeþþe hit is kendelich?
1362 W. Langland Piers Plowman A. xi. 66 Whi wolde God..suffre such a worm..þe wommon to bigyle?
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 16295 Qui smites þou me?
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) iii. l. 361 Quhi, Scot, dar thow nocht preiff?
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. xxi. f. xxixv He wyll saye vnto vs: why dyd ye not then beleve hym?
1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida ii. iii. 65 Patroclus is a foole positiue. Patr. Why am I a foole? View more context for this quotation
a1721 M. Prior Poet. Wks. (1779) II. 103 Why dost thou sigh, why strike thy panting breast?
1776 Trial Maha Rajah Nundocomar for Forgery 60/2 When you came from Patna, why did you bring this paper with you?
1837 J. H. Newman Parochial Serm. III. iii. 37 Why was Saul thus marked for vengeance from the beginning?
1883 D. C. Murray Hearts ix Why don't you learn Italian?
b. Implying or suggesting a negative assertion (= ‘there is no reason why..’); hence often expressing a protest or objection (esp. with should).
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c897 K. Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care xxxvi. 250 Gif he ðæm gehiersuman mannum næfde getiohhad his eðel to sellanne, hwy [v.r. hwie] wolde he hie mid ængum ungetæsan læran?
OE Genesis 282 Hwy sceal ic æfter his hyldo ðeowian, bugan him swilces geongordomes?..Ic mæg wesan god swa he.
c1200 Vices & Virtues 13 Ic..sæide: Hwi me scolde cumen swilche unȝelimpes?
c1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 103 Wi list þu turnd on þe eorðe? aris þat is to seien hwi luuest þu þine fule sunnes? forlet hem.
a1225 Leg. Kath. 1390 Hwi ne hihe we for to beon ifulhet?
a1250 Owl & Nightingale 1234 Þat eni man beo falle in odwite, Wi schal he me his sor atwite?
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 461 (MED) Qui suld I him seruis yield?
a1400 Pistill of Susan 284 Whi spille ȝe Innocens blode?
c1475 (?c1425) Avowing of King Arthur (1984) l. 520 Qwi schuld I layne?
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) ii. l. 180 Eternaile god, quhy suld I thus-wayis de?
1562 N. Winȝet Certain Tractates (1888) I. 28 Quhi abolissis he not the Sonday, as he dois Ȝule?
1608 Yorkshire Trag. sig. B3 Whie should our faults at home be spred abroad.
1767 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield (new ed.) I. iii. 19 The poor live pleasantly without our help, why then should not we learn to live without theirs.
1839 W. M. Thackeray Fatal Boots Feb. I said nothing about it, as why should I?
1839 W. M. Thackeray Fatal Boots Aug. Why, why was I born to undergo such unmerited misfortunes?
c. With ellipsis of the remainder of the sentence, or of all except the principal word or words (esp. when emphatic); also with simple inf. (= ‘why should one..?’). See also sense 4b.
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a1380 St. Aug. 7 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 61/1 Seint Austin was nempned þat name For þreo causus of gret fame:..Whi? furst for excellence of dignite.
c1440 Gesta Romanorum (Add. MS.) lxxxvi. 406 The kyng..askid hym whethere he was shreuyn or not? he saide, ‘nay.’ ‘why so?’ saide the kyng.
1528 Rede me & be nott Wrothe sig. i i Wat. Surely we shulde be proclaymed, For outragious heretykis. Jef. Why more we then the Cardinall?
1528 T. More Dialogue Heresyes ii, in Wks. 182/2 I haue euer herde it sayd, that we should not pray to any dead man but with this condicion, if thou be a saint, than pray for me. Whi so quod I?
a1616 W. Shakespeare Winter's Tale (1623) i. ii. 233 Cam. [He] Stayes here longer. Leo. I, but why ? View more context for this quotation
a1627 J. Fletcher & T. Middleton Nice Valour iv. i, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Xxx/1 But why a Peel-crow here?
1697 J. Vanbrugh Æsop v. i Why so Cold, and why so Coy?
1746 W. Dunkin tr. Horace in P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Epistles i. ii. 65 Blest with a competence, why wish for more?
1841 R. Browning Pippa Passes Introd., in Bells & Pomegranates No. I 4/1 Say not, a small event! Why small?
1843 W. Wordsworth Grace Darling 73 But why prolong the tale?
1847 C. Dickens Dombey & Son (1848) xi. 97 ‘Berry's very fond of you, ain't she?’ Paul once asked Mrs. Pipchin... ‘Yes,’ said Mrs. Pipchin. ‘Why?’ asked Paul.
1905 Times Lit. Suppl. 15 Sept. 293/1 Why books, why chapters, why titles, why any arrangement at all, they queried.
d. and why? is used in some early biblical versions, and hence in the Prayer-book Psalter, to render Hebrew kī because, since, for: apparently in imitation of forwhy after this was apprehended as interrogative (cf. forwhy conj. 2, 1b).
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1535 Bible (Coverdale) Psalms xx[i]. 7 For thou shalt..make him glad wt the ioye of yi countenaunce. And why? because [so 1539 (Great); 1560 (Geneva), 1568 (Bishops') Because; 1611 For] the kinge putteth his trust in the Lorde.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Psalms xxxiv. [xxxv.] 20 O let them not triumphe ouer me... And why? [so 1539; 1560 and later vv. For] their comonynge is not for peace.
e. With the negative form of the simple present tense in formulating a positive suggestion, as ‘why don't I (we, etc.)..?’
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1949 D. Smith I capture Castle (U.K. ed.) xii. 212 Why don't I drive you over to hear it now?
1974 G. Mitchell Winking at Brim vi. 54 Mummy brought a couple of thermos flasks... Why don't I go and collect one?
1982 R. Doyle Havana Special vii. 182 Why don't I stop by her compartment..and see how she is?
2. In an indirect question or a subordinate clause of similar meaning, with sense and const. as in 1.Formerly sometimes followed by that (that conj. 6).
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c888 Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. xxvi. §2 Ic nat hwi ge fultruwiað ðæm hreosendan welan.
c1055 Byrhtferth's Handboc in Anglia (1885) 8 308 Uton..witan hwæt he [sc. the moon] sy..oððe hwy he sy swa gehaten.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) Ded. l. 111 Ȝiff mann wile witenn whi. Icc hafe don þiss dede.
a1250 Owl & Nightingale 474 Þv ayssest me..Hwi ich a wynter singe & grede.
1303 R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne 9265 Yn hys redyng, none wyst why, he logh a grete laghter an hy.
1393 W. Langland Piers Plowman C. xi. 245 Ac whi þe worlde was a-drent holy writ telleþ.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 1323 Seth bigon to þenke whye þat þis tre bicoom so drye.
c1400 Laud Troy Bk. 14241 Durste no man aske whi he were wroth.
a1474 in C. L. Kingsford Stonor Lett. & Papers (1919) I. 136 Wherof to me-werd he makith gret straungenesse: y merveile why.
a1538 T. Starkey Dial. Pole & Lupset (1989) 50 I can not se wy we schold lay any grete faute in the lake of pepul.
1581 Cal. Scott. Pap. VIII. 19 I dare give him no counsell, and I will tell you why.
1611 Bible (King James) Esther iv. 5 To know what it was, and why it was. View more context for this quotation
1724 A. Ramsay Vision in Ever Green I. xvi Say how, and quhair ye met, and quhy.
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. I. 131 Buoyed up with some vague..hope of reprieve, he knew not why.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vi. 7 It is easy to explain why the Roman Catholic was treated with less indulgence.
3.
a. With intensive additions (in direct or indirect questions): see devil n. Phrases 1d, dickens n. 1, earth n.1 Phrases 2, name n. and adj. Phrases 2b, etc.
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1572 (a1500) Taill of Rauf Coilȝear (1882) 95 Quhy Deuill makis thow na dule for this euill day?
1762 ‘T. Bobbin’ Let. in Wks. (1819) 320 There's scarce a boy,..that commits a fault, but can find one excuse or another. Then why the dickens must Tim be without one?
1860 W. W. Reade Liberty Hall, Oxon. II. 20 Why in the name of all patience should you work so hard as this?
1887 F. Darwin Life & Lett. C. Darwin I. 488 Give [the English names] by all means, but why on earth not make them subordinate to the Latin.
1895 R. Kipling Lett. of Trav. (1920) 115 Why, in the name of Reason,..should we vex ourselves?
b. Duplicated in why, oh why..?, as an emphatic interrogative, expressing dismay, disapproval, or complete lack of comprehension of another's actions; ‘why on earth..?’
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1865 M. Arnold Let. 23 July (1895) I. 294 Why, oh, why do not you and Edward come to the Black Forest and join us?
a1884 T. H. Huxley Let. in Henry Bristow Ltd. Catal. (1981) No. 269. 14 My students..cannot get copies of the second edition of the Biology book. Why oh why was it not ready by October.
1934 N. Marsh Man lay Dead xi. 194 Why, oh why, did the murderer sound the gong?
1961 ‘E. Lathen’ Banking on Death viii. 70 Why, oh why, had she been so bitchy to his wife?
1975 Times 8 Mar. 13/7 Why, Oh why does Rolls-Royce..name its latest product after an area of French marsh~land?
4. With a negative particle immediately following.† a. why ne phr. ((usually as one word whine, whyne, also contr. whyn)) Obsolete why not: used in expressions of desire or longing (e.g. hwi nam ich... = ‘why am I not..?’ = ‘O that I were..!’), in Old English of emphatic protest (cf. 1b).
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971 Blickl. Hom. 67 Hwy nelt þu geman þæt min sweostor me læt ane þegnian?
a1000 Ags. Ps. (1835) xi[i]. 4 Hwi ne synt we muðfreo?
c1200 Vices & Virtues 87 Hwi ne mai ich none wuneȝenge habben mid ðe?
a1240 Ureisun in Old Eng. Hom. I. 185 Hwi ne bi-hold ich hu þu strahtest þe for me on rode?
a1240 Ureisun in Old Eng. Hom. I. 185 A ihesu..hwi nam ich in þin earmes?
1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 1207 ‘O þou world’, he says, ‘unclene, Whyn mught þou swa unclen be, Þat suld never mare neghe me’ [L. utinam esses ita immundus, ut me non tangeres].
?a1400 Morte Arth. 703 Whyne myghte I, dere lufe, dye in ȝour armes!
?a1400 Morte Arth. 4157 Qwythene [app. = why then ne] hade Dryghttyne destaynede at his dere wille, Þat he hade demyd me to-daye to dy for ȝow alle.
b. why not is used elliptically as in sense 1c. (Hence as n.: see why-not n.)
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a1380 St. Aug. 920 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 77 And eny tyme ȝif hit schal beo, Whi not nou?
c1412 T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum 4883 Why naght, my gode lorde? what shuld yow eyle? But men do naght so; where-of I merueyle.
1552 R. Huloet Abcedarium Anglico Latinum Whye not? quid ni.
1746 P. Francis tr. Horace in P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Epistles i. i. 44 Yet why not cure the gout's decrepit pain?
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth III. xi. 213 Yet, wherefore, if guilty, should she have perilled herself by coming hither? Why not rather have fled to her father's, or elsewhere?
1882 W. Besant All Sorts of Men II. xxx. 268 You can't marry me? Why not? When I offer you a fortune?
1882 W. Besant All Sorts of Men III. xxxvii. 65 They say, ‘Here is the Fourth Commandment. All the rest you continue to observe. Why not this?’
1924 N.E.D. at Why Mod. I can't tell you why not.
II. As a relative, and related uses.
5. † b. For which reason, wherefore. Obsolete. rare.† c. to do (one) why: to recompense (= to do wherefore at wherefore adv. 3). Obsolete. rare.
a. On account of which, because of which, for which. Usually, now almost always, after reason (formerly also cause, etc.). Also elliptical. (See also cause n. 3c)Formerly also with that (that conj. 6).
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?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 232 Monie ma reisuns beoð hwi mon mei beon bitterliche sari for his sunnen.
a1380 St. Aug. 137 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1878) 64/1 Heo..asked hire þe cause whi Þat heo was so sori.
1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 148 Sche sih hire fader sorwe and sike, And wiste noght the cause why.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 17288 + 161 Þis aungel..neuend peter by name, a skill I tel yow qwy.
1483 in G. Neilson & H. Paton Acts Lords of Council Civil Causes (1918) II. Introd. p. cxxxiii Quhill the said William..schew uther lauchfull cause quhy scho suld nocht have the said thrid.
1521 in Acts Parl. Scotl. (1875) XII. 39/1 We se nane appearance quhy ȝoure grace suld belieff [etc.].
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Luke xxiii. 13–25 What hath this man committed or offended why he should dye?
1581 Parsons (title) Reasons why Catholiques refuse to go to Church.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry V (1623) v. ii. 34 If I demand..what Impediment there is, Why that the naked, poore, and mangled Peace..Should not..put vp her louely Visage? View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Antony & Cleopatra (1623) iv. xv. 89 Eros. My sword is drawne. Ant. Then let it do at once The thing why thou hast drawne it. View more context for this quotation
a1721 M. Prior Female Phaeton vi I'll have my Earl, as well as She, Or know the Reason why.
1846 W. Greener Sci. Gunnery (new ed.) 26 We can perceive the reason why a small proportion of carbonic oxide is always formed during the decomposition of nitre by charcoal.
1908 R. Bagot Anthony Cuthbert xxviii. 372 It would be useless to deny that your life is in grave danger... But that is no reason why you should surrender it without a struggle.
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c1503 tr. Charter of London in R. Arnold Chron. f. vij/2 Also we haue grauntyd for vs and for our eyers to our citezens yt they..be quyt for euer of pauage pontage and murage... Why we wyll & stedfastly byd for vs and for our eyers, yt ye same citezens..haue all her frauncheses..& fre custumes aforesayd.
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the world > action or operation > behaviour > reciprocal treatment or return of an action > reward or a reward > reward or recompense [verb (transitive)]
foryield971
yield971
crownc1175
shipec1275
payc1330
to do meeda1350
rewardc1350
guerdonc1374
reguerdona1393
to do (one) whyc1400
quitc1400
recompense1422
salary1477
merit1484
requite1530
requit1532
reacquite1534
to pay home1542
remunerate1542
regratify1545
renumerate?1549
gratify?c1550
acquit1573
consider1585
regratiate1590
guerdonize1594
munerate1595
regratulate1626
reprise1677
sugar-plum1788
ameed1807
recompensate1841
c1400 N. Love tr. Bonaventura Mirror Life Christ (1908) xxxviii. 195 So that they wolde mede hym and done hym why.
d. Introducing a subject or predicate clause: = ‘the reason why’.Closely allied to the indirect interrogative use (sense 2); e.g. ‘Why this should be so is not clear’ = ‘It is not clear why this should be so.’ (Cf. where adv. and conj. 6.)
ΚΠ
1608 W. Shakespeare King Lear xx. 33 Why I do trifell thus with his dispaire is done to cure it. View more context for this quotation
1820 J. Keats La Belle Dame xii And this is why I sojourn here.
1882 W. Besant All Sorts of Men II. xv. 16 At first I thought it must be a joke. That was why I went away.
1924 N.E.D. at Why Mod. Why I mentioned that was because etc.
III. As a noun (plural whys).
6.
a. Reason, cause.Formerly as a general synonym for these words; now only in reference to something mentioned, and with conscious allusion to the interrogative use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [noun]
thingOE
cause?c1225
why1303
casec1325
chesounc1330
skillc1340
mannerc1390
reasona1398
springa1500
impulsion1605
vicissitude1605
whereforea1616
hoti1646
dioti1651
secret1738
1303 R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne 3758 Ȝyf þou art wunt..For to curse for lytyl why.
1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xii. 217 So I sey by þe þat sekest after þe whyes [MS. C. whaies; MS. B. wyes] And aresonedest resoun.
1393 W. Langland Piers Plowman C. xix. 147 [He] wepte water with hus eyen, the whi witen fewe.
1423 Kingis Quair lxxxvii Vnkyndenes without a quhy.
a1500 Lancelot of Laik (1870) 123 Well he knowith of al my vo the quhy.
1578 J. Rolland Seuin Seages 35 As may perchance be done for sum gude quhy.
a1644 F. Quarles Solomons Recantation (1645) vii. 33 Where heav'n declares a Will, no wise mans eye Should search a Cause, or lips enquire a why.
1740 G. Cheyne Ess. Regimen Pref. p. iii But the Why? the final Causes, the moral Consequences, and the particular Detail, is only here conjectured about.
a1774 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued (1777) III. iv. 53 Never to act upon meer impulse, but to have a Why for all their proceedings.
1832 R. Southey Ess. II. 415 The reader who may not be..acquainted with the when, and the how, and the why of the surrender.
1907 J. R. Illingworth Doctr. Trinity xii. 250 The region not of life's how, but of life's why.
b. A question beginning with (or consisting of) the word ‘why?’; a question as to the reason of something; hence, a problem, an enigma.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > enquiry > [noun] > act or instance of > with specific form
why1532
how1533
what1556
whoa1774
wh-question1957
why-question1973
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > secrecy, concealment > a profound secret, mystery > puzzle, enigma, riddle > [noun]
riddleOE
purposec1350
problema1382
propositiona1382
conclusion1393
divinailc1430
opposal?a1439
riddling?c1475
wordc1480
why1532
dark, hard sentence1535
enigma1539
remblere1599
puzzlement1646
gripha1652
puzzler1651
riddlemy riddlemy1652
puzzle1655
crux1718
teaser1759
puzzleation1767
conundrum1790
poser1793
riddle-me-ree1805
stumper1807
tickler1825
sticker1849
brain-teaser1850
grueller1856
question mark1870
brain-twister1878
skull-buster1926
mind-bender1968
1532 T. More Confut. Tyndale in Wks. 427/1 But I aske of Tyndall no such farre fet whyes, but a why of hys owne dede... I aske hym thys why: Why dydde he translate the same by thys englyshe woorde elder?
a1592 R. Greene Comicall Hist. Alphonsus (1599) i. sig. A4 Make you a why of that?
1637 N. Whiting Le Hore di Recreatione 6 The testy Father with a furrow'd brow Comes to Bellama with demanding why?
1654 R. Whitlock Ζωοτομία 31 Each Day brings forth its why.
a1754 H. Fielding Fathers (1778) ii. i. 37 Why should you think he has my affections? Valence. Again at your why's!
a1780 J. Harris Philol. Inq. (1781) ii. i. 48 Till this Why is well answered, all is Darkness.
1866 A. Steinmetz Weathercasts 20 She could supply the ready ‘because’ to many of the old philosopher's ‘whys’.
c. In collocation with wherefore similarly used.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [phrase]
cause why1340
whya1616
a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) ii. ii. 45 Ant. Shall I tell you why? S. Dro. I sir, and wherefore; for they say, euery why hath a wherefore. View more context for this quotation
a1625 J. Fletcher Rule a Wife (1640) iii. 27 Such as are understanding in their draughts, And dispute learnedly the whyes and wherefores.
1635 R. Sanderson Two Serm. S. Pauls Crosse & Grantham ii. 72 Requiring a why for every wherefore.
1800 Spirit of Public Jrnls. 3 329 By this they shall form assignations, with the when and the where—they shall break them off, with the why and the wherefore, and express a disappointment without a tear or a sigh.
1829 T. Carlyle in Edinb. Rev. June 454 For every Why we must have a Wherefore.
1833 H. Martineau Brooke & Brooke Farm (ed. 3) viii. 103 If I were to tell you all the whys and wherefores on that question.
1911 R. R. Marett Anthropol. viii. 227 The savage is no authority on the why and wherefore of his customs.
IV. Used interjectionally, before a sentence or clause.
7. † c. As an emphasized call or summons, expressing some degree of impatience. Obsolete.† d. why, so! an expression of content, acquiescence, or relief. Obsolete or archaic.
a. As an expression of surprise (sometimes only momentary or slight; sometimes involving protest), either in reply to a remark or question, or on perceiving something unexpected.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > surprise, unexpectedness > exclamation of surprise [interjection]
whatOE
well, wellOE
avoyc1300
ouc1300
ay1340
lorda1393
ahaa1400
hillaa1400
whannowc1450
wow1513
why?1520
heydaya1529
ah1538
ah me!a1547
fore me!a1547
o me!a1547
what the (also a) goodyear1570
precious coals1576
Lord have mercy (on us)1581
good heavens1588
whau1589
coads1590
ay me!1591
my stars!a1593
Gods me1595
law1598
Godso1600
to go out1600
coads-nigs1608
for mercy!a1616
good stars!1615
mercy on us (also me, etc.)!a1616
gramercy1617
goodness1623
what next?1662
mon Dieu1665
heugh1668
criminy1681
Lawd1696
the dickens1697
(God, etc.) bless my heart1704
alackaday1705
(for) mercy's sake!1707
my1707
deuce1710
gracious1712
goodly and gracious1713
my word1722
my stars and garters!1758
lawka1774
losha1779
Lord bless me (also you, us, etc.)1784
great guns!1795
mein Gott1795
Dear me!1805
fancy1813
well, I'm sure!1815
massy1817
Dear, dear!1818
to get off1818
laws1824
Mamma mia1824
by crikey1826
wisha1826
alleleu1829
crackey1830
Madonna mia1830
indeed1834
to go on1835
snakes1839
Jerusalem1840
sapristi1840
oh my days1841
tear and ages1841
what (why, etc.) in time?1844
sakes alive!1846
gee willikers1847
to get away1847
well, to be sure!1847
gee1851
Great Scott1852
holy mackerel!1855
doggone1857
lawsy1868
my wig(s)!1871
gee whiz1872
crimes1874
yoicks1881
Christmas1882
hully gee1895
'ullo1895
my hat!1899
good (also great) grief!1900
strike me pink!1902
oo-er1909
what do you know?1909
cripes1910
coo1911
zowiec1913
can you tie that?1918
hot diggety1924
yeow1924
ziggety1924
stone (or stiffen) the crows1930
hullo1931
tiens1932
whammo1932
po po po1936
how about that?1939
hallo1942
brother1945
tie that!1948
surprise1953
wowee1963
yikes1971
never1974
to sod off1976
whee1978
mercy1986
yipes1989
?1520 J. Rastell Nature .iiii. Element sig. Bvij Than I perceyue ye wyll make gode chere Hu. why what shulde I els do?
1581 Confer. with Campion (1583) C iij Why, is not Saint Iames Epistle called the Catholike Epistle of Saint Iames. How do you then denie it to be Canonicall?
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing iv. ii. 39 Why this is flat periurie, to call a Princes brother villaine. View more context for this quotation
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing v. iv. 74 Bene. Do not you loue me? Beat. Why no, no more then reason. View more context for this quotation
1611 Bible (King James) Matt. xxvii. 23 They all sayde vnto him, Let him be crucified. And the Gouernour said, Why, what euil hath he done?
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 533. ⁋1 What do I think? why, I think she cannot be above six foot two inches high.
1779 J. Warner in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1844) IV. 274 What was I to do in this more than Egyptian darkness? Why, go to bed. Very true.
1837 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers xxxviii. 417 ‘Goodness gracious!’ said Mary,.. ‘Why it's that very house.’
1847 T. De Quincey Secret Societies in Tait's Edinb. Mag. Oct. 667/1 Were there no such people as the Essenes? Why, no; not as Josephus described them.
1863 C. Kingsley Water-babies iii. 103 And, as he spoke, he turned quite pale, and then quite white. ‘Why, you're ill!’ said Tom.
1893 M. Pemberton Iron Pirate i Mary looked up suddenly..and said,..‘Why, I believe I've been asleep!’
b. Emphasizing or calling more or less abrupt attention to the statement following (as in the apodosis of a sentence), in opposition to a possible or vaguely apprehended doubt or objection.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [interjection] > emphasizing a following statement
whatOE
loOE
lookOE
aha1225
loura1225
halec1300
why1545
if (also and) you pleasec1563
ahem1606
I say1613
ahey1696
sithee1828
please it you1881
lookit1907
1545 T. Raynald tr. E. Roesslin Byrth of Mankynde ii. sig. P.viv When she feleth greate ache in the inner parte of the eyes.., ye reste of the body taken as it were with a werynesse without any outwarde apparent cause: why these thynges portende..aborcement to be at hande.
1590 T. Lodge Rosalynde (1592) N 2 b And to conceale it, why it doubled her griefe.
1594 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 sig. C2v Why let me see, I thinke thou canst not see yet.
a1596 Sir Thomas More (1911) i. i. 122 Take an honest woman from her husband! why, it is intollerable.
1604 W. Shakespeare Hamlet i. ii. 121 Ham. I shall in all my best obay you Madam. King. Why tis a louing and a faire reply. View more context for this quotation
1604 W. Shakespeare Hamlet iii. ii. 259 Why let the strooken Deere goe weepe, The Hart vngauled play. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) i. i. 33 If hap'ly won, perhaps a haplesse gaine; If lost, why then a grieuous labour won. View more context for this quotation
1647 A. Cowley Request in Mistress iii If her chill heart I cannot move, Why, I'le enjoy the very Love.
1719 J. Swift Quiet Life in Wks. (1735) II. 351 Why Dick, thy Wife has dev'lish whims.
1769 O. Goldsmith Rom. Hist. I. 439 If you will have Caesar for your master, why have him.
1841 C. Dickens Old Curiosity Shop i. i. 42 ‘A long way, wasn't it, Kit?’.. ‘Why then, it was a goodish stretch, master,’ returned Kit.
1863 C. Kingsley Water-babies iii. 103 If she chooses to come, why she may; and if not, why I go without her.
1869 G. J. Whyte-Melville Songs & Verses 93 So he made for the gate,..And the chain being round it, why—over he flew!
1882 W. Besant All Sorts of Men II. xxiii. 139 ‘Not a doubt,’ added the Professor. ‘Why, it stands to reason.’
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > command > command or bidding > command or order [interjection] > summons
why1599
1599 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet iv. iv. 29 Mistris, what mistris, Iuliet..Why Lambe, why Lady, fie you sluggabed, Why Loue I say..why Bride. View more context for this quotation
1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice ii. v. 6 What Iessica... Why Iessica I say. View more context for this quotation
1600 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 2 v. i. 6 What Dauy I say... Why Dauy.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > acquiescence > [interjection]
why, so!1597
contenta1616
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II ii. ii. 87 Seruingman. My Lord, your son was gone before I came. Yorke. He was; why so go all which way it will. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) iv. iii. 194 Pet...It shall be what a clock I say it is. Hor. Why so this gallant will command the sunne. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iii. iv. 106 Hence horrible shadow...[Ghost vanishes.] Why so, being gone I am a man againe. View more context for this quotation
1826 W. Scott Woodstock I. iii. 65 If you will have the things rendered even now, why so—and if not, hold me blameless.
V. . See forwhy adv. and conj. and cf. why-for adv. and conj. Obsolete, archaic, or dialect.In later use commonly apprehended as the adverb why with a redundant for prefixed (cf. from whence).
Categories »
for why
8.
a. interrogative. For what reason, why (= senses 1, 2).
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > why, wherefore, or for what reason
for whyc1000
whereofc1175
wheretoa1225
whereforec1230
whereata1325
how1340
wheretilla1400
whereupon1535
wherebya1616
whaffor1922
c1000 Ags. Ps. cxiii. 5 Þu, Iordanen, for hwi gengdest on bæcling?
1782 W. Cowper John Gilpin 212 Away Went Gilpin's hat and wig! He lost them sooner than at first—For why?—they were too big!
1896 E. F. Benson Babe B.A. i For why? I am dining with the Babe to-night.
b. relative. For which reason, wherefore; for which (= senses 5a, 5b).
ΚΠ
a1616 W. Shakespeare Othello (1623) i. iii. 257 The Rites for why I loue him, are bereft me.
1819 Metropolis (ed. 2) II. 207 We do not like him, I do not precisely know for why.
c. conj. For the reason that, because, for.
ΚΠ
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) iii. iii. 40 [She] Trembled and shooke: for why, he stamp'd and swore. View more context for this quotation
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth I. xi. 281 ‘Why, Dame,’ said the hostler,..‘as for what he was like I cannot tell,..for why I never saw un.’
Compounds
why-question n. a question inquiring after the reason for something; one which is introduced by the word ‘why’; cf. wh n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > enquiry > [noun] > act or instance of > with specific form
why1532
how1533
what1556
whoa1774
wh-question1957
why-question1973
1973 A. Dundes Mother Wit 568 ‘Why’ questions are always difficult to answer.
1978 Language 54 71 A that-clause can be the basis of a why-question when it is assigned the semantic status of the volunteered stance of the subject of the verb whose complement it is.
Derivatives
why v. intransitive, to ask the question ‘why?’ (chiefly as present participle).
ΚΠ
1926 H. Pearson Whispering Gallery ii. 19 I made the mistake of doing or dying, but at the same time why-ing.
1930 D. H. Lawrence Assorted Articles 11 Why indeed? But once you start whying, there's no end to it.
1932 E. M. Brent-Dyer Chalet Girls in Camp i. 24 ‘Why?’.. ‘For goodness' sake don't start why-ing, Rix!’
ˈwhying n.
ΚΠ
1959 Times Lit. Suppl. 2 Jan. 7/1 (heading) Howing and whying.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1924; most recently modified version published online September 2021).
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adv.n.int.c888