Pronunciation

/waɪ/

Definitions

• Adverb: Expressing the reason or cause for something; serving as an explanation or justification. For example: “I’m staying late because I have to finish this report.”
• Interrogative pronoun: Used to ask the reason or cause for something. For example: “Why are you leaving early?”
• Preposition: In some cases, used with “because” to introduce a reason. For example: “She decided to study because she wanted to improve her grades.”

Phrases

• “Why not?” suggests permission or encouragement for a particular action.
• “Why bother?” implies that the effort is unnecessary.
• “Why don’t you…?” is a suggestion or invitation to do something.

Example Sentences

• Adverb: “I asked him why he was absent from the meeting.”
• Interrogative pronoun: “She wondered why they hadn’t received a response yet.”
• Prepositional phrase: “He explained the reason why he was so stressed.”

Synonyms

• Because
• As
• For
• Inasmuch as
• The reason being

Antonyms

• Why not? (Contrast: But why?)
• Without reason (Contrast: With no explanation)