whereforewhereforadv.n.

Brit.

/ˈwɛːfɔː/, U.S.

/ˈ(h)wɛrˌfɔr/

Forms: α. Middle English hwarfore, Middle English waruore, quor-fore, Middle English quar-fore, quer-fore, huervore, werfore, Middle English warfore, Middle English–1600s wherfore, Middle English wharfore, wher-ffore, qw(h)erf(f)ore, Scottish qwharfore, Middle English–1500s Scottish quharfore, 1500s Scottish quhairfore. β. Middle English werefore, ware uore, Middle English warefore, where-fore, Middle English wharefore, qwereffore, Scottish quharefore, 1500s Scottish quherefore, Middle English– wherefore. γ. Middle English wharfor, quarfor, querfor, Middle English warfor, Middle English–1500s Scottish quharfor, Middle English werfor, qwer for, Middle English–1500s wherf(f)or, 1500s Scottish qwarfor, quhairfoir, 1500s–1700s Scottish quhairfor, 1600s Scottish quherfoer. δ. Middle English quere-for, 1500s, 1800s wherefor.

Etymology: < where adv., conj., and n. Compounds 2 + for prep. Compare Dutch waarvoor , Old Norse hvar fyrir , Middle Swedish hvarfore , Swedish varfor , Danish hvorfor , German wofür . For the spellings compare therefore adv. and n.

I. Interrogative uses.For the dependent or indirect interrogative use, and its distinction from the relative, cf. what pron.

1. For what? esp. for what purpose or end? (Often scarcely distinguishable from 2.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > for what reason or purpose

whereforec1200

whereunto1423

c1200 Vices & Virtues 45 Þu finst feawe ðe wile ȝiuen ðe ani þing, bute hie witen hwarfore.

a1300 Cursor Mundi 1296 Seth þen sette him spell o-nend And tald him warfor þat he was send.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 1734 He teld þat resun to mani a man, Quarfor he suilk a schip bigan.

1476 in C. L. Kingsford Stonor Lett. & Papers (1919) II. 12 I understonde there schalle be a gret Counsell, whereffore I wot never.

1555 in A. Feuillerat Documents Office of Revels Edward VI (1914) 199 As herunder the partyes names and somes of monye due and wherfore perticlerly ensue.

1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II ii. iii. 121 Wherefore was I borne?

a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) iii. i. 40 E. Ant... Open the dore. S. Dro. Right sir, Ile tell you when, and you'll tell me wherefore. Ant. Wherefore? for my dinner.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 657 But wherfore all night long shine these..?

1846 A. Marsh Father Darcy xxix Here I am—wherefore come, I have to learn.

2. For what cause or reason? on what account? why? (Frequently with ellipsis; often coupled with why for emphasis.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > on account of which or wherefore

wherethroughc1220

wherethorough?c1225

whereforec1230

forwhyc1275

whereofa1325

whereup1340

wherebyc1380

whereonc1420

whereuponc1485

on account1817

(on) account of1928

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

c1230 Hali Meid. 15 Þe feondes flan fleoð awei aȝain on him seluen, and loke hwarfore.

a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1632 Iacob calde ðat stede betel; Quor-fore he it dede, he wiste wel.

c1325 Metr. Hom. 31 His felau thoht herof ferly, And asked him quarfor and qui.

1423 Kingis Quair ii As I lay In bed allone waking,..Fell me to mynd of many diuerse thing, Off this and that; can I noght say quharfore.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Sam. xii. 23 Now that it is deed, wherfore shulde I fast?

1584 King James VI & I Ess. Prentise Poesie sig. Kij Ȝe may maruell paraventure, quh [a] irfore I sould haue writtin in that mater.

1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. i. 2 Whose honesty they all durst swear for, Though not a man of them knew wherefore.

1781 W. Cowper Truth 12 Hard lot of man—to toil for the reward Of virtue, and yet lose it! Wherefore hard?

1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas IV. x. ix. 120 You..ran away..without leaving word why or wherefore.

1853 C. Dickens Bleak House xx. 193 If he be ever asked how, why, when, or wherefore, he shuts up one eye and shakes his head.

1873 H. W. Longfellow Michael Angelo i. iv But wherefore should I jest?

II. Relative uses.

3. For which. Now distinguished by stress and spelling (whereˈfor). †without anything wherefore, without a return or equivalent; †to do wherefore, to make a return, give an equivalent.

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > for which reason or purpose

wherefore1297

the mind > possession > acquisition > not obtaining or acquiring > [phrase] > without a return or equivalent

without anything wherefore1297

1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 7526 Willam hit sende hire vaire inou wiþoute eny þing ware uore.

1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xiv. 40 Lyflode..Wher-of or wherfore or where-by to lybbe.

a1400 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 353 No wollemongere..ne may habbe no stal in þe heye-stret of Wynchestre bote he do war-fore.

c1400 Rule St. Benet (prose) 27/22 Þa þat serue sal ta yeme til þam þat etes, þat tay haue na defaute of þat tay sal haue, wharfore þai make na noise.

1531 W. Tyndale Answere Mores Dialoge f. lxxxiiij That we be bound to beleue the church in thynges where fore they haue no scripture.

1551 R. Crowley Pleasure & Payne sig. Avi^v I..gaue you that wherefore ye sought.

1600 W. Shakespeare Henry V v. ii. 1 Peace to this meeting, wherefore we are met.

1913 Act 3 & 4 George V c. 20 §118 (1) (d) All sums (not exceeding..one hundred pounds) due in respect of compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1906, the liability wherefor accrued before the said date.

4. On account of or because of which; in consequence or as a result of which. Chiefly with noun (esp. reason or cause) as antecedent. archaic.

ΚΠ

c1250 Kent. Serm. in Old Eng. Misc. 28 Gode werkes þet bieth þo offringes..werefore se christenman..of-seruet þo blisce of heuene.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 45 Greate blasfemies of god and of his halȝen hueruore god him wreþeþ.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 10784 Þar es resuns..Quar-for godd wald sco spused were.

c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xxxii. 145 Þou schall fynd na thing with vs wharfore þou schuld werray apon vs.

1474 W. Caxton tr. Game & Playe of Chesse (1883) i. iii. 13 The causes wherfore this playe was founden ben thre.

1495 Liber Festivalis v iij/2 I denounse..all tho that purchasen lettres of ony lordes courte wherfore letynge is made in cristen courte.

1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. lxiii. 151 The true reason wherfore Christ doth loue belieuers is because their belief is the gift of God.

1829 R. Southey Sir Thomas More II. 187 The reason is sufficiently manifest wherefore a preference for republican institutions should hitherto have been shown.

a. Introducing a clause expressing a consequence or inference from what has just been stated: On which account; for which reason; which being the case; and therefore. (Now always ˈwherefore.)

ΚΠ

1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 1194 Whar-for worldes worshepe may be cald Noght elles.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 16806 Þen com word to sir pilat..Of all thingez þat by-fell, Wharfor he wex radd.

c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Law of Armys (2005) 218 This barne is all jnnocent.., quharefore he aw nocht tobe grevit.

c1500 Melusine (1895) 361 And ryght forth said geffray, ‘I chalenge the, wherfor deffende the.’

a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 157 Sowtaris, with schone weill maid and meit Ȝe mend the faltis of ill maid feit, Quhairfoir to hevin ȝour saulis will fle.

c1620 A. Hume Of Orthogr. Britan Tongue (1870) i. iii. §2 Quherfoer in this case I wald commend to our men the imitation of the greek and latin.

1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield II. iii. 62 I could not continue a silent spectator of her distress, wherefore assuming a degree of severity in my voice and manner [etc.].

1842 Ld. Tennyson Morte d'Arthur in Poems (new ed.) II. 15 More things are wrought by prayer Than this world dreams of. Wherefore, let thy voice Rise like a fountain for me night and day.

1882 W. Besant All Sorts of Men II. xxix. 238 A person, you see, is an individual, or an indivisible thing. Wherefore, let us not despise our neighbour.

†b. Followed by soever: For whatever reason; on whatever account. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > for some or any reason

whereforec1230

somewhy1858

c1230 Hali Meid. 61 Sone so þu telles te betere þen an oðer—beo it hwerfore se hit eauer beo,..þu marres ti meidenhad.

a1533 Ld. Berners tr. Arthur of Brytayn (?1560) lxxv. sig. Svi He is in a great study wherfore so euer it be.

1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. xxxii. 598 But come they once in Question, wherefore soeuer it bee, let them not escape.

III. As a noun.

6. A question beginning with wherefore, or (more usually) the answer to such question; cause, reason. Often following why similarly used.

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

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.

a1625 J. Fletcher Rule a Wife (1640) iii. 27 Such as are understanding in their draughts, And dispute learnedly the whyes and wherefores.

1641 ‘Smectymnuus’ Vindic. Answer Hvmble Remonstr. xiii. 144 But let him first answer our Therefores, and wee will quickly answer his Wherefores.

1719 A. Ramsay Epist. to J. Arbuckle 6 [He] disna care for A how, a what way, or a wherefore.

1838 C. Dickens Oliver Twist II. xxx. 184 They will have the why and the wherefore, and take nothing for granted.

1884 A. S. Swan Dorothea Kirke xiv I am carried back to the days when I rebelled and demanded the wherefore of all God's dealings with me.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1923; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	wherefore
释义	whereforewhereforadv.n. Brit. /ˈwɛːfɔː/, U.S. /ˈ(h)wɛrˌfɔr/ Forms: α. Middle English hwarfore, Middle English waruore, quor-fore, Middle English quar-fore, quer-fore, huervore, werfore, Middle English warfore, Middle English–1600s wherfore, Middle English wharfore, wher-ffore, qw(h)erf(f)ore, Scottish qwharfore, Middle English–1500s Scottish quharfore, 1500s Scottish quhairfore. β. Middle English werefore, ware uore, Middle English warefore, where-fore, Middle English wharefore, qwereffore, Scottish quharefore, 1500s Scottish quherefore, Middle English– wherefore. γ. Middle English wharfor, quarfor, querfor, Middle English warfor, Middle English–1500s Scottish quharfor, Middle English werfor, qwer for, Middle English–1500s wherf(f)or, 1500s Scottish qwarfor, quhairfoir, 1500s–1700s Scottish quhairfor, 1600s Scottish quherfoer. δ. Middle English quere-for, 1500s, 1800s wherefor. Etymology: < where adv., conj., and n. Compounds 2 + for prep. Compare Dutch waarvoor , Old Norse hvar fyrir , Middle Swedish hvarfore , Swedish varfor , Danish hvorfor , German wofür . For the spellings compare therefore adv. and n. I. Interrogative uses.For the dependent or indirect interrogative use, and its distinction from the relative, cf. what pron. 1. For what? esp. for what purpose or end? (Often scarcely distinguishable from 2.) ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > for what reason or purpose whereforec1200 whereunto1423 c1200 Vices & Virtues 45 Þu finst feawe ðe wile ȝiuen ðe ani þing, bute hie witen hwarfore. a1300 Cursor Mundi 1296 Seth þen sette him spell o-nend And tald him warfor þat he was send. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 1734 He teld þat resun to mani a man, Quarfor he suilk a schip bigan. 1476 in C. L. Kingsford Stonor Lett. & Papers (1919) II. 12 I understonde there schalle be a gret Counsell, whereffore I wot never. 1555 in A. Feuillerat Documents Office of Revels Edward VI (1914) 199 As herunder the partyes names and somes of monye due and wherfore perticlerly ensue. 1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II ii. iii. 121 Wherefore was I borne? View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) iii. i. 40 E. Ant... Open the dore. S. Dro. Right sir, Ile tell you when, and you'll tell me wherefore. Ant. Wherefore? for my dinner. View more context for this quotation 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 657 But wherfore all night long shine these..? View more context for this quotation 1846 A. Marsh Father Darcy xxix Here I am—wherefore come, I have to learn. 2. For what cause or reason? on what account? why? (Frequently with ellipsis; often coupled with why for emphasis.) ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > on account of which or wherefore wherethroughc1220 wherethorough?c1225 whereforec1230 forwhyc1275 whereofa1325 whereup1340 wherebyc1380 whereonc1420 whereuponc1485 on account1817 (on) account of1928 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 c1230 Hali Meid. 15 Þe feondes flan fleoð awei aȝain on him seluen, and loke hwarfore. a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1632 Iacob calde ðat stede betel; Quor-fore he it dede, he wiste wel. c1325 Metr. Hom. 31 His felau thoht herof ferly, And asked him quarfor and qui. 1423 Kingis Quair ii As I lay In bed allone waking,..Fell me to mynd of many diuerse thing, Off this and that; can I noght say quharfore. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Sam. xii. 23 Now that it is deed, wherfore shulde I fast? 1584 King James VI & I Ess. Prentise Poesie sig. Kij Ȝe may maruell paraventure, quh [a] irfore I sould haue writtin in that mater. 1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. i. 2 Whose honesty they all durst swear for, Though not a man of them knew wherefore. 1781 W. Cowper Truth 12 Hard lot of man—to toil for the reward Of virtue, and yet lose it! Wherefore hard? 1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas IV. x. ix. 120 You..ran away..without leaving word why or wherefore. 1853 C. Dickens Bleak House xx. 193 If he be ever asked how, why, when, or wherefore, he shuts up one eye and shakes his head. 1873 H. W. Longfellow Michael Angelo i. iv But wherefore should I jest? II. Relative uses. 3. For which. Now distinguished by stress and spelling (whereˈfor). †without anything wherefore, without a return or equivalent; †to do wherefore, to make a return, give an equivalent. ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > for which reason or purpose wherefore1297 the mind > possession > acquisition > not obtaining or acquiring > [phrase] > without a return or equivalent without anything wherefore1297 1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 7526 Willam hit sende hire vaire inou wiþoute eny þing ware uore. 1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xiv. 40 Lyflode..Wher-of or wherfore or where-by to lybbe. a1400 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 353 No wollemongere..ne may habbe no stal in þe heye-stret of Wynchestre bote he do war-fore. c1400 Rule St. Benet (prose) 27/22 Þa þat serue sal ta yeme til þam þat etes, þat tay haue na defaute of þat tay sal haue, wharfore þai make na noise. 1531 W. Tyndale Answere Mores Dialoge f. lxxxiiij That we be bound to beleue the church in thynges where fore they haue no scripture. 1551 R. Crowley Pleasure & Payne sig. Avi^v I..gaue you that wherefore ye sought. 1600 W. Shakespeare Henry V v. ii. 1 Peace to this meeting, wherefore we are met. 1913 Act 3 & 4 George V c. 20 §118 (1) (d) All sums (not exceeding..one hundred pounds) due in respect of compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1906, the liability wherefor accrued before the said date. 4. On account of or because of which; in consequence or as a result of which. Chiefly with noun (esp. reason or cause) as antecedent. archaic. ΚΠ c1250 Kent. Serm. in Old Eng. Misc. 28 Gode werkes þet bieth þo offringes..werefore se christenman..of-seruet þo blisce of heuene. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 45 Greate blasfemies of god and of his halȝen hueruore god him wreþeþ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 10784 Þar es resuns..Quar-for godd wald sco spused were. c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) xxxii. 145 Þou schall fynd na thing with vs wharfore þou schuld werray apon vs. 1474 W. Caxton tr. Game & Playe of Chesse (1883) i. iii. 13 The causes wherfore this playe was founden ben thre. 1495 Liber Festivalis v iij/2 I denounse..all tho that purchasen lettres of ony lordes courte wherfore letynge is made in cristen courte. 1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. lxiii. 151 The true reason wherfore Christ doth loue belieuers is because their belief is the gift of God. 1829 R. Southey Sir Thomas More II. 187 The reason is sufficiently manifest wherefore a preference for republican institutions should hitherto have been shown. 5. a. Introducing a clause expressing a consequence or inference from what has just been stated: On which account; for which reason; which being the case; and therefore. (Now always ˈwherefore.) ΚΠ 1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 1194 Whar-for worldes worshepe may be cald Noght elles. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 16806 Þen com word to sir pilat..Of all thingez þat by-fell, Wharfor he wex radd. c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Law of Armys (2005) 218 This barne is all jnnocent.., quharefore he aw nocht tobe grevit. c1500 Melusine (1895) 361 And ryght forth said geffray, ‘I chalenge the, wherfor deffende the.’ a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 157 Sowtaris, with schone weill maid and meit Ȝe mend the faltis of ill maid feit, Quhairfoir to hevin ȝour saulis will fle. c1620 A. Hume Of Orthogr. Britan Tongue (1870) i. iii. §2 Quherfoer in this case I wald commend to our men the imitation of the greek and latin. 1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield II. iii. 62 I could not continue a silent spectator of her distress, wherefore assuming a degree of severity in my voice and manner [etc.]. 1842 Ld. Tennyson Morte d'Arthur in Poems (new ed.) II. 15 More things are wrought by prayer Than this world dreams of. Wherefore, let thy voice Rise like a fountain for me night and day. 1882 W. Besant All Sorts of Men II. xxix. 238 A person, you see, is an individual, or an indivisible thing. Wherefore, let us not despise our neighbour. †b. Followed by soever: For whatever reason; on whatever account. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > for some or any reason whereforec1230 somewhy1858 c1230 Hali Meid. 61 Sone so þu telles te betere þen an oðer—beo it hwerfore se hit eauer beo,..þu marres ti meidenhad. a1533 Ld. Berners tr. Arthur of Brytayn (?1560) lxxv. sig. Svi He is in a great study wherfore so euer it be. 1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. xxxii. 598 But come they once in Question, wherefore soeuer it bee, let them not escape. III. As a noun. 6. A question beginning with wherefore, or (more usually) the answer to such question; cause, reason. Often following why similarly used. 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 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. 1641 ‘Smectymnuus’ Vindic. Answer Hvmble Remonstr. xiii. 144 But let him first answer our Therefores, and wee will quickly answer his Wherefores. 1719 A. Ramsay Epist. to J. Arbuckle 6 [He] disna care for A how, a what way, or a wherefore. 1838 C. Dickens Oliver Twist II. xxx. 184 They will have the why and the wherefore, and take nothing for granted. 1884 A. S. Swan Dorothea Kirke xiv I am carried back to the days when I rebelled and demanded the wherefore of all God's dealings with me. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1923; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < adv.n.c1200
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