why, thank you

== English == === Etymology 1 === From Middle English why, from Old English hwȳ (“why”), from Proto-Germanic *hwī (“by what, how”), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷey, instrumental case of *kʷís (“who”), *kʷid (“what”). Cognate with Old Saxon hwī (“why”), hwiu (“how; why”), Middle High German wiu (“how, why”), archaic Danish and Norwegian Bokmål hvi (“why”), Norwegian Nynorsk kvi (“why”), Swedish vi (“why”), Faroese and Icelandic hví (“why”), Latin quī (“why”), Doric Greek πεῖ (peî, “where”), Ukrainian чи (čy, “if”), Polish czy, Czech či (“or”), Serbo-Croatian či (“if”). Compare Old English þȳ (“because, since, on that account, therefore, then”, literally “by that, for that”). See thy. ==== Pronunciation ==== (wine–whine merger) IPA(key): /ˈwaɪ̯/, [ˈwaɪ̯] (/aɪ̯/-ungliding) (General South African) IPA(key): /ˈwaː/ (MLE) IPA(key): /ˈwa̝ː/ (without the wine–whine merger) IPA(key): /ˈʍaɪ̯/, [ˈʍaɪ̯] ~ [ˈw̥aɪ̯] (Scotland) IPA(key): /ˈʍae̯/, [ˈʍae̯] (/aɪ̯/-ungliding) (Southern US) IPA(key): /ˈʍaː/, [ˈʍaː] ~ [ˈw̥aː] Rhymes: -aɪ Hyphenation: why Homophones: wye, Y, y (wine–whine merger) ==== Adverb ==== why (not comparable) (interrogative) For what cause, reason, or purpose. Introducing a complete question. 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain) Why do you have a map of the world? With a negative, used rhetorically to make a suggestion. Why don't you ask her out for dinner? Introducing a verb phrase (bare infinitive clause). Introducing a noun or other phrase. (relative) For which cause, reason, or purpose. (fused relative) The cause, reason, or purpose for which. ===== Synonyms ===== how come, wherefore, to what end, what for, why so, (obsolete) for why ===== Translations ===== ==== Noun ==== why (plural whys or why's or whies) Reason. ===== Synonyms ===== wherefore ===== Translations ===== ==== Interjection ==== why (dated or literary) An exclamation used to express pleasant or unpleasant mild surprise, indignation, or impatience. ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Translations ===== ==== Verb ==== why (third-person singular simple present whys or whies, present participle whying, simple past and past participle whyed or whied) (intransitive, transitive) To ask (someone) the question "why?". ===== Derived terms ===== === Etymology 2 === A variant of quey. ==== Noun ==== why (plural whies) (Yorkshire, obsolete) A young heifer. === Etymology 3 === ==== Noun ==== why Alternative form of wye; the name of the Latin script letter Y/y. ===== Derived terms ===== === References === “why, v.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000. === Further reading === “why”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC. William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin Eli Smith, editors (1895–1910), “why”, in The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia: […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC. === Anagrams === hwy, hwy. == Cornish == === Alternative forms === hwi (Standard Written Form) === Etymology === From Proto-Celtic *swīs (compare Breton c’hwi, Welsh chi, Old Irish síi), from Proto-Indo-European *wos. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ʍiː/, /ʍəɪ/ === Pronoun === why (Standard Cornish, Standard Written Form with Traditional Graphs) you (formal or plural) == Middle English == === Noun === why alternative form of quye