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English
Noun
whys and wherefores pl (normally plural, singular why and wherefore)
- (set phrase) The reasons or motivations for a fact, action, or decision, especially the complete set of such reasons or motivations.
1887, George Bernard Shaw, chapter 5, in An Unsocial Socialist:I can no more tell you the whys and wherefores of myself than I can lift myself up by the waistband and carry myself into the next county.
1908, Lucy Maud Montgomery, chapter 1, in Anne of Green Gables:[I]f she noticed anything odd or out of place she would never rest until she had ferreted out the whys and wherefores thereof.
September 5 2004, Albert M. Forget, “Question integrity of vets attacking Kerry”, in Seattle Post-Intelligencer:Of the hundreds of thousands who served in Vietnam, most still do not understand the whys and wherefores of our involvement.
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