weil

== German == === Etymology === From the accusative of Middle High German wīle (modern Weile), from Old High German wīla, from Proto-West Germanic *hwīlu, from Proto-Germanic *hwīlō. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /vaɪ̯l/ Rhymes: -aɪ̯l === Conjunction === weil because, given that (archaic, obsolete) while, during Synonyms: während, solange ==== Usage notes ==== In standard German, weil is a subordinating conjunction and links a subordinate clause with the conjugated verb in the final position: At the beginning of a sentence, some style guides prefer replacing weil with da: Da sie schon wieder verschlafen hat, hat sie den Zug verpasst. In spontaneous speech, weil is also used as a coordinating conjunction by linking a second independent clause with the conjugated verb in the second position: Sie hat den Zug verpasst, *weil sie hat schon wieder verschlafen. Here, weil functions similarly to standard denn: Sie hat den Zug verpasst, denn sie hat schon wieder verschlafen. In writing which imitates speech (such as texting), this same phenomenon can be observed. It is possible that weil is currently undergoing a process of re-grammaticalization in which it can be used like da or denn; that is, as a subordinating or coordinating conjunction. From 1955 to 1974, only 8.3% of weil-clauses in spontaneous speech were verb-second, yet by 1993 to 2000, this had increased to 46.6%. If such a process is underway, it is far from complete: Usage of weil as a coordinating conjunction with a verb-second word order remains nonstandard and is virtually non-existent in formal written German. === References === === Further reading === “weil” in Duden online “weil”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎[6] (in German) “weil” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.