wherefore meaning (archaic): definition, etymology and quotations

wherefore

adv

UK /ˈwɛəˌfɔː/ · US /ˈweɹˌfɔɹ/

Etymology From Middle English wherfor, wherfore, hwarfore, equivalent to where- (“what”) + for. Compare Dutch waarvoor (“what for, wherefore”), German wofür (“for what, what for, why”), Danish and Norwegian hvorfor (“wherefore, why”), Swedish varför (“wherefore, why”). More at where, for.

Archaic, Conjunctive, Interrogative Why, for what reason, because of what.

Ah, Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? / Denie thy Father, and refuſe thy name, / Or if thou wilt not be but ſworne my loue, / And il'e no longer be a Capulet.c. 1591–1595 (date written), [William Shakespeare], […] Romeo and Juliet. […] (First Quarto), London: […] Iohn Danter, published 1597, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii]:
VVherefore weepe you?1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i], page 11, column 2:

3 more examples

Wherefore doe the wicked liue, become old, yea, are mightie in power?1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Job 21:7, column 1:
And if he preached other than the right doctrine, wherefore did his superiors in the Carthusian convent permit it? If the shepherds turn a wolf in sheep's clothing into the flock, they should not blame the sheep for being worried.1828 May 15, [Walter Scott], chapter II, in Chronicles of the Canongate. Second Series. […] (The Fair Maid of Perth), volume III, Edinburgh: […] [Ballantyne and Co.] for Cadell and Co.; London: Simpkin and Marshall, →OCLC, page 27:
"Good morning, Mrs. Denny," he said. "Wherefore this worried look on your face? Has that reprobate James been misbehaving himself?"1920, Herman Cyril McNeile, chapter 1, in Bulldog Drummond:

Archaic, Conjunctive, Formal, Indicative Therefore; thus.

For behold, by the power of his word man came upon the face of the earth, which earth was created by the power of his word. Wherefore, if God being able to speak and the world was, and to speak and man was created, O then, why not able to command the earth, or the workmanship of his hands upon the face of it, according to his will and pleasure?1830, Joseph Smith Jr., chapter 4, in The Book of Mormon^(https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Book_of_Mormon_(1981)/Jacob#Chapter_4), Jacob:
Wherefore, Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr., is guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors and should be removed from office.2010 March 17, House of the United States, House Resolution 1031:

Derived terms: why and wherefore
Related terms: 203 terms
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wherefore

conj

Archaic Because of which.

Wherefore, thus ſaith the holy one of Iſrael, Becauſe ye deſpise this word, and truſt in oppreſſion and peruerſeneſſe, and ſtay thereon: Therefore this iniquitie ſhalbe to you as a breach ready to fall, ſwelling out in a high wall, whoſe breaking commeth ſuddenly at an inſtant.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Isaiah 30:12–13, column 1:
Wherefore it was that by the time the authorities awoke to the fact that something had happened Billy Byrne was fifty miles west of Joliet, bowling along aboard a fast Santa Fe freight.1914 October – 1916 July, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Mucker, Chicago, Ill.: A[lexander] C[aldwell] McClurg & Co., published 31 October 1921, →OCLC:

wherefore

noun

An intent or purpose; a why.

Ant[ipholus of Syracuse]. Shall I tell you why? / S. Dro. [Dromio of Syracuse] I, ſir, and wherefore; for they ſay, euery why hath a wherefore.c. 1594 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Comedie of Errors”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii], page 88, column 2:
Let Us make one to seek, to seek and never to find out concerning the wherefore of the making of the gods.1905, Lord Dunsany [i.e., Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany], The Gods of Pegāna, London: [Charles] Elkin Mathews, […], →OCLC:

1 more example

They want their money without reference to the hows and wherefores.1996, Richard Bausch, Good Evening Mr. & Mrs. America, and All the Ships at Sea, page 72:

Derived terms: whys and wherefores