(wèishénme) - why in Mandarin
wèishénmeTraditional: 為什麼
[wei˥˩ ʂɤ˧˥ mə] HSK 2
#17 of 5,000 Core 1000
Translation
why
Word origin
A three-character question phrase meaning why. 为 (wèi) 'for' plus 什么 (shénme) 'what' gives literally 'for what'. 什 has the 亻 'person' radical, and 么 is a small phonetic element used in question words.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 为 (wèi, 'for') + 什 (shén) + 么 (me), together 'for what'
Stroke order
为
什
么
Examples
？
Why did you not come to the party?
蓝？
Why is the sky blue?
。
I do not understand why he said that.
?
Why are you up so early?
?
Why is this question so hard?
Used in
Stories
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