why not
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why not
adverb
- Why is that so? (for a negative statement) I don't want to go out today. — Why not?
- Used to state that one has no objection to and approves of a proposal. Let's have pizza for lunch. — Yeah, why not?
- Used to introduce a proposal. Why not try turning the handle in the other direction to see if that opens the window?
Translations
Every language
adv why is that not true
| Español | por qué no |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 当たり前でしょ atarimaedesho |
| 中文 | 何不 hébù, 為什麼不呢 /为什么不呢 wèishéme bù ne, 為什麼 /为什么 wèishénme |
| Português | por que não |
| Français | pourquoi pas |
| Deutsch | warum nicht |
| Italiano | perché no |
| Русский | а почему́ a počemú, а что́ так a štó tak |
adv state one has no objection
| Español | por qué no |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | もちろん mochiron |
| 中文 | 好的 hǎo de |
| Português | por que não |
| Français | pourquoi pas |
| Deutsch | warum nicht, wieso nicht |
| Italiano | perché no |
| Русский | почему́ бы и нет počemú by i net |
| العربية | لِمَ لَا lima lā |
| עברית | לָמָּה לֹא láma ló |
adv introduce a proposal
| Español | por qué no |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 要不 yàobù |
| Português | por que não |
| Français | pourquoi ne pas |
| Русский | почему́ бы не počemú by ne |
Talk about this word "why not." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/why%20not. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. why not. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/why%20not "why not." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/why%20not.
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BibTeX
@misc{why_not_2026,
title = {why not},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/why%20not},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
