wherefore


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where·fore

 (wâr′fôr′, hwâr′-)
adv.
1. For what purpose or reason; why.
2. Therefore.
n.
A purpose or cause: wanted to know all the whys and wherefores.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

wherefore

or

wherefor

n
(usually plural) an explanation or reason (esp in the phrase the whys and wherefores)
adv
archaic for what reason? why?
sentence connector
(Law) archaic or formal for which reason: used as an introductory word in legal preambles
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

where•fore

(ˈʰwɛərˌfɔr, -ˌfoʊr, ˈwɛər-)

adv.
1. for that cause or reason: Wherefore let us be grateful.
2. Archaic. for what? why?
n.
3. the cause or reason: to study the whys and wherefores of a situation.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.wherefore - the cause or intention underlying an action or situation, especially in the phrase `the whys and wherefores'
why
reason, ground - a rational motive for a belief or action; "the reason that war was declared"; "the grounds for their declaration"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

wherefore

noun
1. That which provides a reason or justification:
call, cause, ground (often used in plural), justification, necessity, occasion, reason, why.
Idiom: why and wherefore.
2. A fact or circumstance that gives logical support to an assertion, claim, or proposal:
argument, ground (often used in plural), proof, reason, why.
Idiom: why and wherefore.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations

wherefore

(archaic) [ˈwɛəfɔːʳ] (also liter)
A. ADV (= why) → por qué; (= and for this reason) → y por tanto, por lo cual
B. N = why C
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

wherefore

adv (obs) → warum, weswegen
conj (obs) → weswegen
n ? why N
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
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References in classic literature ?
"Moklan is thy son and mine, wherefore he is brave.
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It told of how the black folk grew, and of how the white folk should eat them up, and wherefore they were and wherefore they should cease to be.
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"By thy long grey beard and glittering eye, Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?
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Wherefore, upon such as come hereabouts, I levy a certain toll, which I use for a better purpose, I hope, than to make candlesticks withal.
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Wherefore necessity must be laid upon them, and they must be induced to serve from the fear of punishment.
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"Fellow-soldiers--fellow-exiles," began Endicott, speaking under strong excitement, yet powerfully restraining it, "wherefore did ye leave your native country?
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"Dear Madam [I wrote], It has come to my knowledge that when you walk in the Gardens with the boy David you listen avidly for encomiums of him and of your fanciful dressing of him by passers-by, storing them in your heart the while you make vain pretence to regard them not: wherefore lest you be swollen by these very small things I, who now know David both by day and by night, am minded to compare him and Porthos the one with the other, both in this matter and in other matters of graver account.
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Wherefore he was held in high reverence, and when the two other gentlemen were hanged for lying the Theosophists elected him to the leadership of their Disastral Body, and after a quiet life and an honourable death by the kick of a jackass he was reincarnated as a Yellow Dog.
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"Wherefore should I hold, good fellow?" said the stranger in a smooth voice, and looking at Robin for the first time.
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To tell you the truth, I had supposed that YOU were jesting in your letter; wherefore, my heart was feeling heavy at the thought that you could feel so displeased with me.
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The end of life was reserved for the Dog, wherefore the old man is often snappish, irritable, hard to please, and selfish, tolerant only of his own household, but averse to strangers and to all who do not administer to his comfort or to his necessities.
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Wherefore he fled from what he deemed his father's house and in his flight he encountered and unwillingly slew his father Laius.
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