In the Russian language there are many consonant words among themselves, and sometimes a person does not quite understand where to use what. Often the question arises - how to write "for what" or "why." This is difficult to understand, since both options exist and are used in speech. But when and in what cases they are used, let's find out.
Why do people get confused
The thing is that, like many other words, "for what" and "why" are pronounced exactly the same, while they are written differently, but even in meaning they are sometimes very similar. For example, you may ask: "Why did you go to grandma?" and “Why did you go to your grandmother?”, most likely, no one will notice the difference until you deliberately split the words in the second version with your voice. Both of them are used when posing questions, and a person often has to think when writing, but how to write “for what” or “why”?
What for
The word "why" differs from its "twin" in that it is a completely different part of speech - an adverb. If it is replaced by the word “why,” then it is unequivocal, the adverb “why.” Here are some examples:
"Why did you drop out of university, because you could have a great bright future?", Can be replaced by "Why did you drop out of university, because you could have a great bright future?"
What for
And now we’ll figure out how to spell “why” and when to use it?
But this option will be written separately, as these are two different words - the preposition "for" and the pronoun "what". The sentences used with these words are the answer to the question of instrumental case (by whom? What?).
Examples:
- Alexandra, why did you go to Moscow in September for clothes or shoes?
- Dear guys, what are we going to go into the forest today for berries or mushrooms?
Feel the semantic difference?
Once again about the difference
To summarize such a difficult topic and once and for all answer the question “for what or why”, we will push these two “forehead to forehead” variants, use them in identical sentences and see how their meaning changes.
"Veronica, why did you go to the supermarket?" - this proposal clarifies the purpose of the visit to the store, “why” can be replaced by the word “why” and answer something like this: “I went to the supermarket to buy groceries.”
"Veronica, why did you go to the supermarket?" - it asks specifically what products or things Veronica went to the store. We answer this way: "I went for tangerines and grapes."
The proposals sound exactly the same, but the goals for which the questions were asked are different.
Now that you’ll doubt how to write “for what” or “why,” remember these simple examples, and the fog of ignorance will probably clear.